


The Heat Of Our Love

by ArtemisMoore



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Galra Keith (Voltron), Light Bondage, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mpreg, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-26
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2018-11-19 03:16:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 95
Words: 148,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11304588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisMoore/pseuds/ArtemisMoore
Summary: When Keith falls into his first heat and goes to Lance for Comfort he thinks it would be a one time thing. Until he discovers the feelings he has for Lance. From then on it becomes harder and harder for him to stay away, until finally he gives in and let's his love for Lance take him over.Is this the end to his friendship and the beginning for something more? And why does Keith's stomach hurt so much?





	1. Simmer

Finding out that he was part Galra was one of the hardest things Keith had gone through. Between getting his ass kicked by the Blade of Marmora in a trial that lasted two days and having Allura hate him for almost two months, he never thought anything would be more taxing and difficult. That was, of course, until Zarkon was defeated, which is when things seemed to go back to normal.

After finding Shiro and Matt hiding among a group of rebels and repairing the final broken pieces of the castle from the battle, they focused on creating alliances throughout the galaxy to continue making themselves stronger and preparing for the possibility of another war. Trying to figure out how to get home back to Earth without causing another layer of mayhem was another question altogether. Would everything be alright without Voltron? Even if just for a few weeks?

They were doing one thing at a time though, and their current stop was on a very familiar Balmera visiting old friends and getting energy crystals that they would use to power the ships and give to members of their alliance.   
The surface of the Balmera was warm as the planet was going through its ‘summer’ months, the temperature easily reaching into the high nineties. Everybody had gotten into their normal everyday clothes in their attempts to keep cool in the heat. Keith wanted nothing more than to stay in the ship where it was cooler but at the same time he had been feeling chilly the past few days. That was just one of many things that had changed since activating his Galra blade.

So there he was, standing outside near one of the legs of the ship and watching all his friends doing different things nearby. Shay was trying to teach Hunk how to talk to the Balmera using his hand, which was cute in a way. Pidge was talking to happily to Matt; even after a week together they still had so much to talk about. Shiro, Coran, Allura, and Lance were talking to one another, but Keith could tell by the look on their faces that Lance was flirting with Allura.

Keith sighed and decided that he should try to distract Lance from the Princess, but the second that he took a step forward a sharp pain shot through his spine, causing him to let out a pained croak. It felt like electricity was rushing up and down his spine; his chest felt tight, his breathing picked up, and his vision started to become blurry.

Something was wrong. Really wrong.

He needed to call out; he needed to gain some attention. He needed help.

“L-Lance!” He called out to the one person who was facing his way. 

“Keith? Keith?!” Lance’s frightened cries quickly caught the attention of the rest of the team as they ran towards Keith.

Keith’s leg’s were about to give out under him when Lance was suddenly in front of him, his hands under Keith’s arms as he caught the red paladin. Keith was panting, feeling hotter and hotter by the second. He felt like he was going to either throw up or pass out.

“Keith, what’s wrong?” Shiro asked, and Keith shook his head.

“I-I don’t know.” He felt like he couldn’t breathe, like somebody was squeezing his throat. “I-I can’t breathe.”

Hunk reached over, his large hand touching Keith’s forehead. “He’s burning up. We should get him inside and get him cooled down.”

“He’s probably dehydrated.” Pidge noted as Lance and Shiro supported Keith’s sides and helped him walk towards the ship.

“Dehydrated? What is that?” Allura asked worriedly.

“It’s why we drink so much water.” Matt explained. “If we don’t get enough, our bodies shut down and we could die.”

“What?” Allura squeaked.

“I will fetch some water!” Coran volunteered, quickly jogging off towards the kitchen area.

“Should we not put him in a pod?” Allura said.

“N-no… I'm alright.” Keith said.

“He’s right; if he is dehydrated, introducing too much water at once could make it worse.” Pidge said. “He’ll be fine; we’ll just have to keep an eye on him for a while.”

“This is so weird, though; out of all of us Keith is the most responsible when it comes to drinking water.” Lance said, looking down at Keith. “I mean, he lived in the desert, for hell's sake…”

Coran jogged in with a bottle of water, handing it to him quickly. Keith sat up, his hands shaking as he began to sip on it. While it helped him breathe a little better, he didn’t feel like he was cooling down any. Everything was still so hot; his back felt like there was a current shooting right up through it, but most of all his head felt like it was in a compress.

“Thank you, Coran.” He said, looking up at all of them. “Sorry for the scare, everybody.”

“No problem, buddy. We’re here for you.” Shiro said, rubbing Keith’s back. “Just be more careful next time. You really worried us.”

 

Three days later, they were back in space and Keith wasn’t feeling any better. He still felt feverish, but with no vomiting, diarrhea, or any other flu-like symptoms he was convinced that he wasn’t physically sick. His head wouldn’t stop hurting and he was becoming very sensitive to lights and sound, so it made training hard if not impossible. He did his best to participate in everything that the team did, but on the third day he just decided to give up and lay down in his room while everything was still quiet.

He had been taking naps more and more frequently lately. No matter where it was he would doze off. He had even fallen asleep in Red a few times. Keith didn’t even care if his team thought he was lazy; at this point, sleeping was the only thing that made it so he didn’t feel so sick.

Keith put his hand over his ears as they began to throb, making him curl into a ball with his blanket tangled between his legs and over his shoulder. He shivered, sucking in a deep breath as he did all he could to calm himself down; he needed to cool himself down.

Deep breath in… breathe out.

Keith continued to tell himself to breathe until finally he drifted to sleep.

 

His breath was coming out in short pants as the continuous pleasure washed over him. This, of course, surprised Keith, because while he knew it was a dream it all felt so real. He was pinned face down to the bed, a hand wrapped around his waist while somebody thrusted into him, causing him to moan out in pleasure. The last time he had felt like this was the night they met Rolo and the alien ravished him, but there was something different about this.

An almost Ocean Breeze-like scent filled the air over the scent of their sex. It was familiar and pleasant, helping him relax. He could feel whoever was dominating him bite the tip of his ear, causing Keith to whimper. It felt surprisingly painful but good at the same time.

“Just a little more.” His mate said.

Wait, mate? That didn’t seem right.

Keith grunted as his lover began to speed up, a dull pain beginning to drown out the pleasure as Keith shuddered. What was this feeling? It felt so good. So good he felt like he was going to go crazy with all that he was feeling.

“Just a little more, Keith. It’s almost over. I promise; just hang in there. I know it hurts, but it’s necessary.”

Keith was so confused. What was necessary? What was almost over? Were they going to cum? Oh god, was Keith going to cum in his sleep?! He needed to wake up before this got out of hand. Not that it wasn’t already. Keith looked over at his mate, blushing when he realized that the person above him was none other than Lance, his freckled face blushing as he moaned.

“Lance?!”

 

Keith sat up in his bed with a gasp as pain radiated from his ears and around his face. Why of all people did he have that kind of dream about Lance?! Lance and him were barely friends and yet Keith was suddenly having wet dreams about him?! Keith sighed, bringing his hands to his head as he held it, surprised to feel something soft between his skin and his hair.

It felt almost like peach fuzz but it was a little longer and almost tickled his fingertips. He began to shake as worries of what it could be began plaguing his thoughts. Despite the still-existing pain he got out of bed and stumbled out into the hallway, nearly slamming into Pidge.

“Keith?”

Keith didn't stop to reply as he rushed towards the bathroom. He slammed the door open with his shoulder, looking at the mirror with a gasp of surprise. The edges of his face had light purple fur in an almost wave-like pattern, and where his ears had been only hours ago were soft, fluffy, purple ears that seemed to go slightly lighter at the tips. He checked for a tail and was thankful to not find one.

“W-what’s wrong with me?” He asked, stepping away from the mirror until his back bumped up against a wall. “W-why do I look like this? What am I going to do now? I can't let anybody see me like this…”

“Keith?” Pidge was now outside the door. “Keith, what's wrong?”

Keith trembled. “I-I… Something…” He cleared his throat to stop his voice from shaking. “Nothing, Pidge. I'm just not feeling good still.”

“Do you want me to get Shiro?” She offered.

“N-nope. I'm good. No problem.”

“Keith, you haven’t been right for almost a week now; we need to figure something out.”

Keith continued looking at his reflection, his hands shaking gently. She had no idea just how right she was about that. He had to figure out what was wrong with him. If he couldn’t figure it out fast then things could get bad again. Allura just started liking him again, but if he started looking like a Galra then there was no saying she wouldn’t hate him again, or that the rest of his friends wouldn’t hate him for the same reason.

He sucked in a deep breath, fixing his hair so that it covered most of his newly-purple ears. He then sighed heavily and did his best to keep the fur hidden. He opened the bathroom door, giving a worried Pidge a gentle smile.

“Are you sure you don’t need anything?”

“I’m sure. I’ll be fine. What’s going on?”

“Shiro wants us to do some water training.” Pidge said with a soft smile. “But if you’re not feeling any better I can tell him you’re sitting out.”

The idea of going swimming caused fear to ripple through Keith. He had never been one for the water, and on top of that he was becoming some kind of Galra freak. If he didn’t do the training, though, he would fall behind compared to the rest of the team, which was something he couldn’t afford to do.

“Um, no. Just give me a little while.” He said. “I’ll get changed and meet you all at the pool.” He smiled.

“Sounds like a plan. Matt, Coran, and the Princess will be watching us today.”

“They will, huh? Well then, we shouldn’t take too long.”

Pidge nodded, walking off but not before giving him a second glance before she vanished down the hallway.

If he could fool Pidge that nothing was wrong, then maybe he could fool everybody. At least until he could figure out how to change back to normal.


	2. Bubble

Keith stood at the edge of the pool, looking down at the water. It had taken a lot of explaining to Coran and Allura to have them understand what an Earth pool was like and that they couldn’t use their Altean pool. Now that the pool was made in a way that they could use it, he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it.

He played with the hem of the black shirt he was wearing with his swim trunks and he had part of his hair down to hide his ears while the rest of his hair hid the fur along his hairline. There was a patch of fur that nearly went down to the center of his forehead; he would have to be more careful if he wanted to keep that hidden but so far it didn’t look like it would be a problem.

He looked over the group, feeling a little better about how silly he must have looked compared to some of the others around the pool. Coran was wearing a full jumpsuit-like swimsuit with a bright yellow swim cap and floaties on his arms. Allura was wearing a bright pink two-piece swimsuit with a purple lace cover tied around her hips with her hair braided down her back. Shiro, Lance, and Hunk were wearing swimsuits in their lions’ colors while Pidge was wearing a tank top and a pair of girl swim trunks. Matt was dressed in his normal clothes and looked ready to take notes.

“There you are, Keith.” Lance looked at Keith’s clothes, then chuckled. “What are you wearing?”

Keith looked down with a blush, remembering the dream. “What’s it look like? It’s a swimsuit.”

“That’s your swimsuit? Dude, just last week you were wearing a normal swimsuit.” Lance pointed out, swimming in circles in the water.  
How could he look so at home in the water? He was like a freaking fish or something. Hunk was sitting on the edge of the pool, kicking his feet. Pidge was looking over Matt’s shoulder, only giving Keith a glance. Shiro was standing at the edge of the water, watching Lance the same way he was.

“Yeah, well, maybe I don’t feel like exposing my chest today. Ever think about that?” He mumbled.

“Well, whatever the case, it’s just going to be a simple exercise.” Shiro said, trying to defuse the situation before anything got out of control. “We’re just going to see how long each of us can hold our breaths. If there’s ever an emergency we’ll want to know who needs to be rescued first.”

“That sounds… really dangerous.” Hunk said timidly.

“Well that’s why I’m here.” Coran said with a smile and Pidge rolled her eyes.

“We’re going to have these harnesses on.” She explained, holding up a bunch of straps that looked like they were made out of leather. “If we feel like we’re running out of time or breath then we’ll tug on the ropes attached to them and Coran and Allura will pull us out of the water.”

Shiro smiled, putting his harness on before giving Matt a playful wink. Matt blushed, looking away from him while the rest of them put their harnesses on. Keith looked down into the water nervously as the rope was attached to the back of his harness. He didn’t necessarily have a fear of water, but under his current… situation he felt uncomfortable with the idea of getting wet. He crossed his arms over his chest, glancing over as his friends one by one climbed into the water except for Lance, who cannonballed into the water.

He sucked in a breath, climbing down into the water and taking a worried breath as it soaked his trunks and the shirt. He was right; the water was weird and it made him want to climb out as soon as possible. Despite that though, he knew that if he didn’t take the training seriously it could affect his teammates.

“Alright, swim to the deep end.” Allura instructed and Lance was the first one to the deep end of the pool, floating on his back when he got there.

“I missed swimming.” Lance said while Keith stayed close to the edge of the pool. “My siblings and I went swimming every weekend on Earth so long as the weather was nice.”

“On weekends I went to my grandma’s and tried different recipes.” Hunk said with a hum. “She was my best friend, man; I hope she’s not too lonely without me.”

“We’ll be home soon enough, guys, but for now we need to focus on training.” Shiro said. “Just because Zarkon is out of the picture doesn’t mean there’s not still people out there who want to rule over the galaxy. The more prepared we are for the next fight the better off we’ll be.”

“Shiro’s right.” Keith said, trying to convince himself more than anybody else. “We need to focus on being a team and not so much on going back to Earth. Everybody will be safer if we don’t lead out enemies there.”

“Good point.” Hunk sighed.

“Alright, let’s begin.” Allura said. “You will all go underwater and do what you can to hold your breath for as long as possible. If you begin to feel like you’re going to pass out or that something is wrong, tug on the ropes and we will pull you up. Matt will be taking down your times so that we can compare your numbers at the end.”

“Count of three, guys. One.”

Keith did his best to calm down.

“Two.”

He clenched his fist.

“Three.”

Keith sucked in a breath before diving down into the water, swimming towards the bottom of the pool. Because of what Altean pools were filled with, having his eyes open in the water didn’t hurt at all so he was able to see his friends swimming deeper and deeper.

Water began to enter his ears, the unfamiliar and almost painful feeling causing Keith to panic and tug on his rope, feeling himself get pulled to the surface.

“Ten seconds.” Matt said, almost surprised as Keith swam to the edge, once again clinging to it.

Pidge came up at thirteen seconds. Hunk at fourteen seconds. Shiro at thirty. Then finally Lance at almost a full minute. It was impressive but also frustrating. Keith knew he could do better than what he had just done. Ten seconds was such a pathetic amount of time, but between trying to keep his ears a secret and the scary feeling that he got from his ears being wet… he just couldn’t take it.

“Keith, what happened?” Shiro asked, swimming over to Keith. “We used to do stuff like this together at the Garrison.” He reminded him, glancing at Matt, who nodded. “Your highest was nearly a minute… you didn’t even last ten seconds.”

“I, um…” He tried to come up with an excuse but finally he sighed. “Something happened earlier… and… I’m not really feeling ‘better’ yet.”

“What happened?” Lance asked, touching Keith’s shoulder and he looked away with a blush.

“I had a dream.” He said. “A dream where I turned purple… and I looked like a Galra. You guys hated me because of it and left me behind. You and Red both did.”

“What?” PIdge swam to him. “Keith, we wouldn’t ever do that.”

“Yeah, man, what do you think we are?” Lance said. “We’re a team; we’re not just going to drop you because you look a little different.”

“Lance is right; the Blade of Marmora has proved to all of us that not all Galra are bad.” Hunk said. “Besides, you’re our friend. We’ve known you as Keith for much longer than we’ve known you as a Galra.”

Keith gulped nervously. “So… if I turned purple?”

“So what? You’d be cute!” Lance said. “Like a purple cat. Meow.”

Keith blushed, then bit his lip. He couldn’t stand the idea of going underwater again and just the plain discomfort he felt, and having his hair holding his ears down was another level of frustration he didn’t want to deal with it. He pulled his hair out of the ponytail before shaking his hair out, showing his friends and teammates the fluffy purple ears and fur around the edge of his face. His friends’ eyes widened and Keith frowned.

“I’m sorry.” He said sadly.

“Keith… you…” Shiro began.

“You look adorable!” Hunk finished.

Pidge reached over, touching his right ear and making him blush as she began to rub it. 

“They’re so soft!” She said, and Hunk began rubbing the other one. Keith was frozen, confused of what to do while they continued petting his ears.  
Lance reached over for a moment, touching Keith’s cheek where the soft fur was.

“Guys, stop.” Keith said, blushing darker and darker until he felt like he was going to explode.

“Come on, guys.” Shiro said. “He’s not a pet; he’s a person. We should get back to training. Keith, do you think you’ll be able to do it?” He asked.

“I can try.” He said, while his friends finally pulled their hands off of him. “The water just feels… weird.” He admitted with a soft shrug.

“That’s all we can ask of you.” Shiro said, messing up his hair before swimming a little further away.

“Okay, let’s try again to see who can hold their breath the longest. We want to get an average time for each of you, then an average for all of you together.” Allura smiled. “It should be pretty easy to figure out and shouldn’t take much longer.”

“Alright then, let’s go.” Shiro said.

Once again, they dove under at a count of three. This time Keith kept his hands over his ears to protect them from the water bothering them. He could feel some eyes on him, though that didn’t bother him nearly as much as when he realized that Lance was one of the ones looking at him. Lance swam over, swimming circles around Keith with a big cheesy smile.

How could Lance look so at home under the water? He was able to swim laps around Keith as though they were nothing while all Keith could do was stay underwater longer than he had last time. Lance’s blue eyes scanned him and Keith looked away, a blush burning onto his face as the memories of his dream danced through his thoughts. Why did Keith have to dream of Lance of all people?

Keith’s lungs began to burn as he watched Pidge swim to the surface with Hunk right on her tail. He finally decided it was time for him to come up and he began to swim towards the top. He sucked in a deep breath when he made it to the surface with a sharp gasp and pant as he swam towards the edge of the pool. Shiro and Lance weren’t much farther behind him.

“Much better.” Matt said, writing their numbers down.

“How are you feeling, Keith?” Coran asked. “Think you can keep going?”

Keith blushed. God, he hated being babied. “Yeah, let’s do this.”

“I like the enthusiasm.” Allura said, giving him a thumbs up, something which Lance and Hunk had taught her and Coran a few months back. “One more time! Let’s go!”

For the final time they dove under the water, Keith covering his ears as he swam around in a circle, looking for Lance. How could he just vanish like that? The water was frikkin’ invisible. He frowned, looking around curiously when a hand touched his shoulder, causing him to whip around and scowl at Lance who once again had a big, goofy smile on his face. He spun through the water, doing tricks in an almost bragging manner as he then flipped upside down so that their faces were close to each other and they were in a Spiderman kiss position.

Keith blushed, examining Lance’s face for a moment and trying to read him when Lance suddenly reached over and grabbed his cheeks. Keith thought he was just trying to play with his fur more until Lance leaned forward and their lips touched. Keith’s mind went blank as he kissed back. It felt so good and made his mind spin. It was spinning so much that he had forgotten he was underwater until a single breath reminded him.

Water rushed up his nose and he quickly moved his hands from his ears to cover his nose and mouth. Lance, surprised at the reaction, quickly grabbed Keith by the waist and pulled him to the surface, allowing Keith to take in a deep breath as he began to cough.

“W-w-w-what the fuck, Lance?!” Keith asked, his face red as the blush burned all the way to his ears.

Lance smiled innocently. “Whatever do you mean?” Lance chuckled.

“Y-y-y-you kissed me!” He splashed Lance with a huff.

“Well yeah, what else am I supposed to do when you’re giving me the bedroom eyes?!” Lance splashed him back, his own face red.

“Bedroom what?! I-I-I didn’t do anything like that!” He squeaked.

“Yes you did!”

“No I didn’t!”

The two continued arguing until the rest of the team came above the water, each one with a different expression. Pidge looked ready to explode with happiness, Hunk looked surprised as hell, and Shiro looked very protective.

“Lance! You kissed Keith!” Hunk pointed out.

“Yes, I realize that! I meant to.” Lance said, hiding his own face. “He was giving me the bedroom eyes!”

“Ohhh, so that’s what that look was!” Pidge said with a giggle.

“T-t-there was no look!” Keith growled, his ears going down. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“There was totally a look.” Shiro said with a frown. “Keith… are you alright?”

Keith growled, getting up out of the water. “Okay, you have my numbers! I’m going to take a shower! Bye!” He said, looking towards the ground as he stomped towards the shower.

What look? Keith thought and nibbled his lip. What in the world could have made Lance think that I would want him to kiss me?!

He stopped just outside of the shower room.

Wait… but… was the kiss really that bad?

He reached up, softly touching his lip with a blush. He had kissed back. He never tried to push Lance away during the kiss, and he didn’t mind it at all. In fact, now that it was over… he wished it would happen again.

I’m so messed up.


	3. Boil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so this Chapter is ALL nsfw so if you don't want Klance sex then I suggest you turn around now because that's what you're about to walk into XD If you do want Klance then continue forward dear readers!

That night, as Keith laid in bed, a continuous feeling washed over him as he curled into a ball with a deep breath. The warmth in his chest was getting stronger and stronger as well as more annoying. He felt like he was going to fall apart or just melt because of the heat. Panting, he rolled onto his back, kicking the blankets off of him and onto the floor.

He was hot. Why was he so damn hot?! He slowly sat up in his bed, sweat dripping down his face and neck onto the sheets under him. He felt like he was going to pass out if he moved too fast. He felt a sound coming up his throat until it came out in a pained whimper which almost sounded like meow of some kind. He reached up, touching his throat as he shook in surprise.

What’s wrong with me? He thought, putting his hands across his stomach as it began to get harder and harder to focus. His stomach clenching and unclenching as waves washed over him. Something’s not right… I need to… get help…

He got up out of bed slowly, his feet trembling as he stumbled towards the door. He pulled it open, sweat dripping down his forehead and neck. He was thankful for the AC that blew through the castle halls but even that didn’t seem to be cooling him down nearly fast enough. It was worse than the day he had collapsed on the Balmera. What was happening to him lately?!

He walked as quickly as he could to the closest room, knocking on it as his legs began to give out under him. He hadn’t even been paying much attention to what room he went to nor did he care much until Lance was standing in front of him and Keith’s hand was pressed against his chest.

“Keith?” Lance grabbed Keith’s shoulders, helping him into his room and onto his blue bed. “Keith, what’s wrong?”

“H-hot.” He said, enjoying the feeling of Lance’s cold sheets under his skin. The sweat was slipping down his tank top, beginning to soak the black fabric. “L-Lance… please… i-it’s too hot…”

Lance seemed to be blushing. “W-w-w-w-what should I do?”

“U-undress me…”

“What?!”

“I-it’s too hot… I can’t move… please.”

“Y-y-you freaked out over a kiss and now you want me to undress you?!”

Keith nodded, a blush forming on his own face. “Please… I know it’s a lot to ask, but please…”

Lance seemed to hesitate, but gulped and reached over to Keith’s chest, beginning to pull up his shirt. The shirt was halfway off when Keith let out a sudden purr-like moan from deep down in his throat. Lance and Keith froze with a blush before looking away from each other quickly.

“D-did you just… purr?” Lance asked and Keith blushed.

“I don’t know!” He squeaked, trying to cover his face when Lance pinned his wrists to the bed.

“Well, we can find out.” Lance offered, and while some part of Keith told him he should try to escape this situation and that Lance was his friend, another part of him wanted to submit to him. Something about this felt good; it felt right. He couldn’t keep lying to himself or Lance any further.

Keith bit his lip timidly before he nodded. “Y-yeah… okay…”

Lance was surprised now, scanning Keith’s face for any sign that he was kidding or would regret this during the middle of it. Upon finding none Lance smiled and leaned forward, kissing Keith softly. Their lips touched and instantly Keith relaxed and closed his eyes. Lance’s lips were so soft, like silk, and he smelled like Ocean Breeze, just like in his dream.

Lance softly began to nibble Keith’s lip, causing the raven-haired male to moan in pleasure as Lance’s tongue wiggled into Keith’s mouth and the two tongues began wrapping around one another. It was so passionate, so soft, so full of love that Keith thought he was going to explode, and when Lance softly bit the tip of his tongue he could feel himself becoming hard. Lance, not unaware of Keith’s situation, kept Keith’s wrists pinned with one hand while sliding the other up Keith’s half-exposed chest, running his thumb over the tip of Keith’s nipple.

Keith moaned softly as Lance’s finger continued to rub around it until his moans turned into a loud purr coming from the center of his chest. Keith was blushing darker and darker until even his shoulders seemed to be blushing. He breathed harder and harder, his ears flat against his head as Lance began to lick and nibble Keith’s neglected nipple.

Soon becoming annoyed with Keith’s shirt, Lance let go of Keith’s wrists and pulled his shirt off the rest of the way before pulling off his own shirt, both males taking a moment to examine one another with either love or lust in their eyes. Maybe even a mix of both.

“W-wow…” Lance said with a soft chuckle as he looked away. “Never thought that… you would look so beautiful.” He said.

Keith blushed. “J-j-just shut up and kiss me.”

Lance chuckled, leaning forward and kissing Keith again while tugging Keith’s sweat pants down to his ankles and off of the bed. Keith moaned into the kiss, turning his head away and allowing Lance the chance to kiss and nip the sides of Keith’s neck. Keith was a purring mess at this point, looking up at the ceiling as Lance pulled off his own pajama pants and dropped them to the floor. Lance began kissing down his chest, nipping here and there and leaving small hickies in places that made it hard for Keith to keep his voice down.

Lance sat up on his knees, digging between the wall and the bed until he found a bottle of lube that he seemed to have hidden from sight. He put the bottom of the bottle into his mouth and tugged Keith’s red boxers off, exposing his hard member to the cooler air, then dropped them onto the floor to pool with the pajamas. Lance grabbed the bottle again, pouring a generous amount into his hand before he rubbed it on Keith’s entrance.

It hadn’t been the first time Keith had felt the cold, unexplainable texture of lube against that specific part of his body, but it had been a while and pure excitement rushed through him. Keith moaned as Lance slowly slid a finger inside of him, causing him to purr louder and claw at the sheets. It felt weird but not painful, so he didn’t need much time to adjust to the one finger slowly thrusting in and out of him. When Keith began to move his hips Lance slid in the second finger, the pleasure making Keith cover his mouth in desperate attempts to keep himself quiet.

When Lance finally slipped in the third finger Keith was beginning to feel some pain, something that Lance seemed to understand and began peppering kisses on Keith’s knees and inner thighs while shushing Keith, who was moaning softly.

“It’s okay.” Lance said. “We can take all the time we need. Deep breaths.”

Keith nodded. “O-okay…” He said, moaning again as Lance began rubbing Keith’s nipples with his free hand. Keith sucked in a breath. “A-alright, you can move.”

Lance nodded, kissing his thigh again before beginning to thrust into Keith slowly with his three fingers, making it a point to pull the three apart slightly when he would pull out, then put them back together when he thrusted back in. Keith was a mess of purrs and moans, unable to do anything but cover his mouth to try and keep himself quiet. It felt so good, better than it had ever felt with any of his past partners, and they hadn’t actually started to have sex yet! This was just preparing!

Lance slowly pulled his fingers out, making Keith whine when the pleasure suddenly stopped. Keith looked up at Lance with a blush, surprised when Lance pulled off his boxers, showing his own hard erection. Lance then began rubbing lube onto his standing member. Lance looked Keith over with a loving smile as he pulled Keith’s legs up and over his hips while slowly beginning to push his cock into Keith’s tight hole. He slowly got deeper, stopping at any sign of pain or discomfort that Keith would show until finally Lance was completely inside of Keith.

Lance hadn’t been the biggest thing he had ever had inside of him, but there was something special about having sex with Lance that made him feel like he didn’t need anything else. It felt so good that he almost didn’t want to wait for Lance to start moving, but he knew that hurting himself would only make Lance blame himself and he didn’t want his lover to be upset.

While Lance waited for Keith to adjust to the intruder deep inside of him he leaned forward, putting his hands up by Keith’s head before beginning to plant soft kisses on Keith’s forehead, cheeks, the tip of his nose, and even his chin. He left a kiss on the lips for last. Keith was falling into a mess of moans almost instantly.

“Lance, please.” He moaned when Lance pulled away from the kiss. “T-t-take me…”

Lance blushed but nodded, moving his hands to grab Keith’s thighs as he began to pull out and thrust back inside of Keith. He moaned, arching his back as the thrusts got deeper and slightly faster. Keith clenched the sheets by his hips, closing his eyes and biting his lip. It felt like he was going to lose his mind. At this point Lance was moaning too, both struggling to keep themselves and each other quiet.

Keith was surprised when Lance leaned forward, continuing to thrust into him while kissing up and down Keith’s neck. Lance used this distraction to wrap his arms under Keith’s back and pulled him up so that Keith was sitting in his lap while he continued to thrust into him. Desperate not to lose himself to the pleasure, Keith wrapped his arms around Lance, bouncing up and down on Lance. The new depths he was reaching made Keith’s eyes roll backwards as he dug his nails into Lance’s back.

Panting, clinging, clawing, and biting; the sex likely looked aggressive from the outside but between the two of them there was nothing but the love that they felt for one another that made it nothing but pleasurable. Keith moaned, panting and nipping Lance’s earlobe.

“L-Lance. P-p-please. C-cum inside, please… I-I-I need you…”

Keith could feel Lance heat up under him as Lance nodded.

“A-anything for you.” Lance said, biting and sucking on the crook of Keith’s neck.

“I-I-I’m cumming.” Keith whimpered excitedly.

“M-me too.”

Lance began to thrust faster before wrapping his arms around Keith’s hips, thrusting harder into him and holding him there as he came deep inside of Keith. The intoxicating feeling that rushed through Keith made him cum as well with a moan, his cum getting smeared between the two of them.

Keith collapsed onto the bed and Lance pulled out of him, both panting as Lance laid next to Keith. Despite being sweatier and fuller than he thought possible for the situation, Keith felt much more relaxed than he had been when he came to Lance. He was exhausted, and before he even realized what had just happened Lance wrapped himself around Keith, pulling the blanket over the two of them. The two then fell asleep faster than they thought possible, soft, lazy kisses exchanged between them.


	4. Whirlpool of Emotions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluff. Lot's of fluff and lots of questions after the two had a long 'adventurous' night.

Lance was surprised to wake up and find that he wasn’t alone in bed. Had he gotten lucky with Allura last night? No, that didn’t seem right; the figure he was spooning seemed thinner and much shorter than Allura. And much less curvy. He wouldn’t have gotten with Pidge, though; not a chance in hell. She wasn’t interested in him in the least. So… who was it that was sleeping next to him?

A soft purr from the sleeping person next to him caused all the memories to come rushing back.

Keith.

He and Keith had sex last night! What was he going to do now? Was Keith going to hate him? Was Keith going to roll over and punch him in the face? He did not want to get punched in the face. Not this early and not by somebody who he had loved so much the night before.

Lance was beginning to consider sneaking out of bed before Keith woke up when the black-haired boy rolled over and put his head against Lance’s chest, wrapping his arms around his ribs.

“Hm… Lance…”

Lance blushed at his name and couldn’t help but smile while looking at Keith’s sleeping smile. Keith had been through so much, and through it all he still had the sleeping face of an angel; in fact, his ears and purple fur around his face only seemed to add to his beauty. Lance slowly reached over, pushing Keith’s hair out of his face before planting a kiss on Keith’s forehead, the smaller male humming gently as he nuzzled his forehead into the kiss.

“Hey, Beautiful. Let’s get up, okay?” Lance said, keeping his voice soft.

“Mmm… twenty more minutes…” Keith complained, snaking his naked leg between Lance’s.

“Come on. If Shiro realizes you’re not in your room he’ll come looking and will kill me when he finds you here.”

“Hmm… good point… but he won’t hurt you. I’ll protect you.” Keith began to purr louder, rubbing his face on Lance’s chest.

Feeling the fur rubbing on his skin made Lance chuckle softly. “Keith, stop. That tickles.”

Keith froze. “You’re… ticklish? I didn’t know that.” He looked up at Lance, his eyes brighter than he thought possible for this early in the morning. “Come to think about it… I don’t know that much about you.”

“And I don’t know much about you…” Lance admitted, running his fingers through Keith’s hair.

“Well… honestly, I don’t know much about myself either…”

“Well then, maybe we should play Twenty Questions. I ask you a question and we both answer, then you ask a question and we both answer again.” Lance suggested.

Keith thought, then nodded. “Okay, that doesn’t sound like too bad of a plan.”

Lance propped himself up his head in his hands and his elbow on the bed. He smiled at Keith, who laid on his back looking up at him, his ears down with a gentle smile.

“Do you have any siblings?” Keith asked, his hands on his stomach.

“Yeah, man! I have seven! Four brothers and three sisters! My house was crazy growing up.” He laughed. “What about you?”

“Uh… no. Not that I know of.” Keith shrugged. “My dad vanished when I was ten and my mom disappeared before I could even remember. Though some of the kids in the orphanage said I was like a brother to them.”

Lance frowned, deciding to ask another question to change subjects. “Well… what’s your favorite animal?”

Keith blushed, looking away. “W-would it be too cliché to say cats? They’re just so stealthy and sleek…”

“Aww. No, that’s cute. I like dolphins. The way they can just glide effortlessly through the water. It’s beautiful.”

“Where did you grow up?”

“Varadero in Cuba. But we moved when my youngest brother got sick. He needed medical treatment that we didn’t have so we came to the U.S. to get him some help.” Lance smiled. “You?”

“I grew up in Arizona for most of my life, but a few of the homes I got put in were in California and Utah. Then I guess after finding my way to the Galaxy Garrison I just found my way home from there.”

Lance nodded understandingly. “What’s your favorite hobby?”

“Hm…” Keith thought for a moment. “I guess figuring things out, following my instincts and seeing where they lead. Kind of like Indiana Jones or the Tomb Raider. Mostly Indiana Jones. W-what about you?”

“Oh man, I loved to swim and surf on Earth; but now I just like helping out everybody here on the ship. There’s not much left to do.”

“Is that how you spent your weekends on Earth? Swimming and surfing?”

“Pretty much, yeah! Except sometimes we would go to my grandma’s and I would help her cook and take care of my siblings. What did you do on weekends?”

Keith blushed again. “I would play baseball; a lot of us did. In fact, normally there were so many of us in one home that we formed our own baseball team.” He chuckled.

“What’s your biggest fear?” Lance asked and Keith’s laughter faded.

Keith was quiet for a moment before he spoke. “Being left behind and forgotten… I just… don’t want to be abandoned. You know?”

Lance nodded slowly. “Y-yeah. I get it… I’ve always been afraid of my family hating me for being how I am.”

“A massive flirt?” Keith guessed and Lance shook his head.

“For being bisexual.”

Keith frowned, looking down. “A-ah… yeah. I lost a lot of homes when they found out I was gay…” He shrugged. “I guess even now people struggle with that kind of stuff…”

“Yeah…”

“When did you know you wanted to be a pilot?” Keith asked, eager to change the subject.

“When we first moved to America. My brother got a telescope but he was too sick to use it so I learned as many constellations and star positions as I could so I could mark them down for him. The more I learned the more interested I got and I wanted to go to space. What about you?”

Keith shrugged. “I guess it’s always just been there. Maybe it’s the Galra part of me that just wanted to go home. I’m not really sure.”

Lance laid down on his back, pulling Keith onto his chest as he hugged him tightly. “How did you and Shiro meet?”

“Oh, we were teamed up together.” Keith said. “Shiro was our communications officer, I was the pilot, and Matt was our mechanic, but because Shiro was a year older than me he had been the pilot for his previous team.”

“Dude, that’s awesome! The first time I saw him was a few times in school but we never actually talked. He was just too cool to approach.”

Keith nodded, letting Lance rub his arm to keep him warm. “What are your parents like?”

“My parents?”

“Yeah…”

“Hm…” Lance thought for a moment. “Well, my mom is super strict but also the nicest person you’ll ever meet. She works really hard trying to raise all of us the best she can. She loves everybody and gives every person the benefit of the doubt while my dad is stoic and quiet most of the time but also very protective. He isn’t afraid to do what he has to to protect us from anybody who wants to hurt us. Overall they were the best parents a guy could ask for.”

“They sound great.” Keith smiled.

“Okay, my turn; um… how does it feel to have ears?”

“Honestly? It feels weird as hell. I mean, whenever there’s a sound I can feel them twitch or whenever I get sad or upset they go down. Not to mention I can hear like, everything.”

“Dude! Cool!”

Keith blushed. “I guess... How do you swim so well?”

“Practice, man.” He winked.

“Practice?! Dude, you’re like a fuckin’ fish! Do you have a tail or something you keep hidden?!”

Lance chuckled. “If I had a tail you would have seen it last night. Speaking of which, do you think you’re going to get a tail?!”

Keith looked up at Lance with a gentle smile. “W-would you like me with a tail?”

“Hm… I think I would, yeah, but you’re perfect how you are.” Lance said and Keith hid his face again. “Do you like me?”

“D-do you like me? Even with the fur… and the ears?” There was fear in Keith’s voice.

“Do you like me without having fur and ears?”

Keith nodded. “Y-yeah… I do. Can I kiss you?”

“Do you want to?”

“Yes…”

“Can I kiss back?”

Keith nodded again, looking up at Lance while both of them began to blush.

“Then… what’s stopping you?”

Keith gulped, leaning forward, their lips softly touching when the alarms began to blare loudly.

“OH, COME ON!” Lance yelled as the two quickly scrambled out of bed and struggled to get dressed.


	5. A What?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! This was supposed to come out yesterday but I had a fever and I was sick as hell. So, here it is!
> 
> Thank you so much for all the positive comments and feedback! It means so much to me!

They were under attack, something they weren’t expecting nor prepared for. The worst part about the situation was that there were not one, but two Galra ships on either side of them ready to take them down.

“What’s going on?” Hunk said, his voice cracking. “Zarkon’s dead, right?! Didn’t we kill him?! Shouldn’t this all be over?” Hunk let out a frightened scream as a group of Galra fighters chased after the Yellow Lion. 

“He… he should be.” Shiro said with a worried growl as the Black Lion attacked the fighters to save Hunk.

“Then why are we being attacked?!” Lance’s frantic voice made a protective feeling shoot through Keith, causing him to growl and for Red to blow fire towards a group of fighters in front of them.

“We’re not sure, but we should get out of here. They just called for backup.” Allura said. “Get back to the ship!”

Keith made sure that the rest of the team made it safely to the ship before he followed them back into the ship and into the lions’ hangers. He sighed, putting his head in his hands with a frustrated growl.

-What’s wrong?- Red asked.

“The Galra should be gone, you heard that…”

-That’s not what I’m talking about, and you know it.- She sighed. -You mated last night, did you not?-

Keith felt his face heat up. “H-h-how did you know about that?!”

She chuckled. -You are my paladin; I can sense when you’re in distress, hurt, and more importantly to the matter… when you’re happy. So, who was it?-

“Y-you know all that but not who it was?”

-Oh please! I can guess but I’d rather hear it from you…-

Keith hesitated for a moment before clearing his throat. “Lance…”

-I KNEW IT!- She squeaked happily. -AHAHA! SUCK IT, COAL!- She roared and Black could be heard grunting in the distance.

“W-what?”

-O-oh! Nothing. So, tell me. How does it feel to be mated? Do you feel any different?-

“Different?” Keith tilted his head. “I-I’ve had sex before, you know.”

-I know, but this would be the first time you’ve done it in heat, no?-

“Heat? What are you talking about?” Keith asked. What the heck was a ‘heat’? Was that why he felt feverish all the time? Was he sick? Did he make Lance sick? Oh god, was Lance going to die?!

-You don’t know… no… of course you don’t. You’re young and new to all of this. I should not be the one to explain it, though… I sense we are approaching a Marmora base. I suggest you talk to one of them.-

“What? Come on, they don’t tell me anything.” He said, trying not to sound whiny. “I’ve asked them so many questions and they just ignore me…. They say I’m too young to understand, and some say that because I'm not full Galra I wouldn’t understand…”

-I would love to tell you, I really would. But I don’t understand as much as I may appear to. Please. Talk to them…-

Keith sighed. “Alright… fine…”

 

Keith was the last one to get to the deck, just in time to see them exit the wormhole. Lance looked up at him with a smile while Shiro walked over to him.

“You alright, buddy?” Shiro asked, putting his hand on Keith’s shoulder. “You’ve been really quiet today; are you still not feeling well?”

“I’m fine.” He said. “Just… I know we’re near the Marmora base; can we stop there for a while? I’m sure they’ll know what the Galra is up to, not to mention they’ll know what’s going on with me. At least I hope they will.”

Shiro looked at Allura, who smiled.

“Great idea, Keith. We can stop; besides, we were going to give them some Balmera Crystals anyways.” She said, the ship slowing down as the main Marmora base came into view.

The wait was only about twenty minutes before Kolivan and a handful of other Marmora exited the base and made their way to the Castle of Lions. Keith was pacing back and forth in the ship, clearly becoming more and more nervous while Matt and Pidge were bouncing off the walls in excitement to know more about the base.

“Welcome back, Kolivan.” Allura said once they entered the Castle.

“Princess Allura, I suppose you have come here to know more about the recent attacks.” Kolivan said, his mask vanishing to show his face.

“Yes, among other things.”

Keith was standing to the side, waiting for his turn to talk when he felt a breath on his neck. Thinking it was Lance, he blushed but didn’t say anything until there was a low growl from behind him.

“You smell like an Omega.” The unfamiliar voice said.

Keith whipped around quickly with a growl as he saw one of the Marmora behind him. He couldn’t see the Marmora’s face because of his hood but he could tell that they were younger than Kolivan. Keith reached for his blade but stopped himself; the last thing they needed was to make enemies with the Marmora.

“Ovan, what are you doing?” Kolivan growled, then frowned when he saw Keith’s face.

Kolivan pulled ‘Ovan’ away from Keith before walking over to Keith himself. He then took Keith’s face in his hands, turning to examine it. Keith was on edge at the touch, and his team seemed to catch onto how he was feeling. Shiro and Lance looked ready to jump into action and Allura looked five seconds away from ripping off somebody's head.

“How long have you been like this?” He asked, then began sniffing around Keith’s face, causing Keith to blush.

“A-a-a few days.”

“Any hot spells, fainting, hunger, or uncontrollable sexual urges?”

Keith glanced around at his team who were keeping an eye on him but no longer directly facing him, as though embarrassed for him. “Y-yeah…”

“I see…” He frowned, “When did the hot spells first start?”

“Um… f-five or six days ago. W-why, do you know what’s wrong with me?”

“Wrong? Nothing is wrong; it’s natural for a boy your age to experience his first mating season. Though I honestly didn’t expect you, being a half-blood, to go through one.”

“A what?!” Keith squeaked. Mating season? He wasn’t supposed to go through a mating season; he was human! Well… not really, but… wouldn’t it have happened before now? Was this going to be a permanent thing? Oh god, he was gonna hate this.

“Why… why hasn’t this happened to him before?” Shiro asked, as though sensing that Keith was frozen in his thoughts.

“It is likely because that before now he had never activated his Galra abilities.” Ovan said “The trial likely unlocked this side of him and now that it’s free it’s just trying to catch up with itself.”

“How long will this ‘mating season’ last?” Matt asked.

“Well, it varies.” Kolivan sighed. “There are different lines of Galra species, and because we don’t know which line he comes from it could last from three weeks to three months. Though judging by his scent and the marking he is failing to hide, he has found a mate. So long as Keith stays near his mate and his mate properly marks him, Keith will be safe from anybody who wants to hurt him.”

“Hurt him?” Allura asked. “Why would anybody want to hurt Keith because of this?”

Keith, who was blushing so hard he felt like he was going to faint, walked away from the Galra and walked into Shiro’s arms, hoping that the team would protect him from what he was hearing. He knew he needed to listen, but he hated what they were saying.

“It’s not that they will want to kill him… rather… Galra, especially ones with an Omega scent such as Keith, are targeted by many species. Anybody who can register this scent will either flock to him to protect him, or go to him to mate with him. While a mark on his neck, bigger than the one he has, will protect him from most there are a few… who will still try to mate him. He should be watched during this time, at least until the fur vanishes and his ears go back to normal… until then, though, we can only assume his heat has just started.” Kolivan explained.

“So… he’ll grow more fur?” Pidge guessed.

“Yes. By the time he has reached the peak of his heat he will likely be all purple, and if he is a species with a tail, he will have one. These transformations will be painful, especially if he has a tail… it’s not pleasant. Though most Galra grow their tails before they’re six weeks old… for a nineteen-year-old human… it could be more difficult.”

“Great…” Shiro said, patting Keith’s head. “We’ll be sure to stay with him and keep our eyes on him. As for his mate… I’m sure whoever he or she is knows what they need to do and will do whatever it takes.”

“I will… I mean- we will! I mean- uh… yeah, we’ll keep our eyes on him!” Lance promised and Keith groaned into Shiro’s shirt.

“Right…” Allura said. “Anyways, back to the attacks. You know what is causing them?”

“Indeed.” Ovan said. “We intercepted a message going out from Zarkon Command; it went out to not only all Galra ships but to anybody who was listening. Essentially, whoever captures Voltron will be the next leader of the Galra.”

“A-are you serious?” Hunk said. “So, what, there’s essentially a bounty on our head going out to the most evil criminals across the universe? Ah man, I thought this was over! I just wanna go home…”

Allura’s eyes softened. “We will do what we can to get them off our backs, Hunk. And if it comes to it, I’m sure between Matt, Pidge, and Slav, we can find a way to contact your family in the future.” She promised.

Hunk nodded slowly. “Y-yeah… of course. I understand.”

“Good, then we should go before we bring the Galra here. We need to protect our allies.” Shiro said. “Please, help yourself to some of the Balmera crystals we have in our hold. They may not help you much but we hope you could find some use for them.”

“Of course we will.” Kolivan said with a bow towards Allura. “May your travels be safe, Princess Allura. The universe still needs you and your lions.”  
Kolivan, Ovan and the other Marmora left the castle, leaving Keith more confused than he had been before. He was shaking, looking sicker than before as he clung to Shiro. ‘Mating Season’. Of course the Galra had a mating season; why the fuck wouldn’t they?! This stuff always seemed to happen to Keith, so why was he so surprised?

“Keith… you okay?” Hunk asked.

Keith nodded slowly, not saying anything. He didn’t want to admit that he was scared- no, he was terrified. So essentially if he wandered away from anybody in his group, moreso Lance than anybody else, he could be ‘mated’ with by somebody else! He didn’t want that! He didn’t want to even think that was even possible.

“I’ll be fine…” He cleared his throat. “I just, um… I need a moment.”

He pulled away from Shiro before taking Lance’s hand and leading Lance away from the group. He needed to talk to Lance; if he wasn’t up to the challenge then Keith wasn’t going to put the person he cared for so much in danger.


	6. It's Getting... Worse?

“Keith… Keith, slow down.” Lance said as he jogged to keep up with Keith, who was dragging him by his hand. “Where are we going?”

Keith’s knees were shaking. Honestly, he had no idea where he was going or what he was going to do when he got there, but what he did know is he wanted to be with Lance. He stopped in the middle of a hallway, trembling for a moment before he turned and hugged Lance as he shook and whimpered.

“This is too much…” Keith panted. “I-I just… I just want to be normal… but now I find out I’m going to get more purple and that these feelings will last a-and that strangers will want to-”

“Keith.” Lance hugged Keith tightly, running his fingers through Keith’s hair. “I won’t let anybody hurt you… I promise.”

“I’m scared… is it normal to be scared?”

“When you just find out that you’re going through something you’ve never experienced before, it’s bound to be a little scary… Just remember to breathe and that we’ll all be here for you until it’s over.”

Keith nodded, sucking in a deep breath as he tried to ignore the feeling growing in his stomach. Lance smelled so good; did he always smell this good? Damn it. “So… what do you think Kolivan meant by you having to mark me?” He asked.

Lance tensed up under him. “Hm… I don’t know… maybe I have to leave more hickies?” He guessed with a shrug.

Keith nodded. “I guess that would make sense…”

The two were quiet for a moment before Lance spoke up again.

“Do you wanna-”

“More than anything.”

“Red’s hanger?”

“Too obvious; let’s do it in Blue.” Keith said, taking Lance’s hand with a blush as he once again led him away.

 

“What are we going to do?” Shiro asked, crossing his arms.

“About what part?” Pidge asked. “The fact that Keith is going through a mating season or that every criminal in the entire universe is after us in hopes to lead the Galra?”

“Both.” He sighed. “The most dangerous first, though. We have to focus on defending ourselves from the Galra while also making sure that our allies aren’t in danger. We should make our way back to Arus, check on the Arusians in case they’re being targeted. They’re small and will be easy to take out if they’re put under fire.”

“I agree.” Allura said with a nod. “But… what should we do about Keith?”

“I’m sure Lance has it under control.” Hunk chuckled.

 

Lance didn’t even wait until they got inside the Blue Lion before he began stripping Keith of his armor and undersuit. Keith moaned into their kisses, helping Lance out of his suit as they made it into the Lion, both naked by the time Lance laid Keith down on the floor and began to kiss down Keith’s neck and chest. Keith moaned, arching his back and letting Lance mark his pale skin with hickies and bite marks.

Lance hummed for a moment before he rolled Keith over onto his stomach, confusing the black-haired male as Lance then began licking Keith’s entrance. Keith moaned and blushed, covering his mouth.

“L-Lance, w-wait.” He moaned, but was ignored as Lance kept licking. “I-I-I, ah….”

Lance’s tongue effortlessly slipped in and he hummed lovingly. “You’re still so open.” Lance purred. “I won’t have to prepare you.”

Keith whimpered, putting his head on the floor, glancing over his shoulder towards Lance as his hands were up by his head. Keith then blushed and looked away as Lance climbed over him, pushing his hard member into Keith. Keith was pleasantly surprised to find that Lance had been right; he was still wet and open from the night before. Was this effect of the ‘Mating Season’? He didn’t really care about questioning it too much once Lance made it all the way into him.

“Are you okay?” Lance asked, peppering kisses up Keith’s back. “That doesn’t hurt, does it?”

“N-no… i-it feels good.” He moaned, then gasped in pleasure when Lance pulled out slowly, then thrust back in at the same speed. “Ah…” He clenched his fists as Lance continued thrusting at the same speed.

Keith covered his mouth, doing his best to keep himself quiet when Lance suddenly slammed back in, his hands tightly gripping Keith’s hips as he pounded into the smaller male. He gasped, moaned, and arched his back as the feeling got more and more pleasurable.

He couldn’t focus; he was seeing spots, sweat dripping down his face as he moaned desperately. How was it that sex with Lance always felt better than sex with any of his past partners?! What was so different?!

Lance grabbed Keith by his chest, hugging him tightly as he pulled Keith onto his lap, picking him up and setting him on his lap. Thrusting into him again, going into the same depth from the night before. Keith reached down, gripping Lance’s thighs as he pushed himself up slightly so that the thrusts were more invasive and sudden. It all felt so good he thought he was going to lose his mind.

“L-Lance, o-oh, f-fuck; more!” He moaned, gasping when Lance chomped onto his neck with his teeth before sucking slightly on it.

The thrusts were slowed during these few moments, but they were still incredibly deep.

“L-Lance, I-I’m going to c-c- ah…”

“Me too.” Lance hummed, pulling his mouth away as he began thrusting deep into Keith once again. 

Lance moaned out, warmth filling Keith as Lance came deep inside of Keith, who arched his back. The feeling pushed him over the edge and he dug his nails into Lance’s legs as he came as well, spots dancing in his vision. Lance gently laid Keith down on the floor, rubbing Keith’s back as he pulled out.

“Was that too much?” He asked and Keith shook his head.

“N-no.” He looked at Lance with a smile. “I-it was incredible…” He said, then shuddered as he felt the cum slowly begin to ooze out. Keith blushed, covering himself as he looked away. “I-I should really shower before we do it again, though.” He chuckled.

“Good idea; we’ll get you dressed and then we’ll hit the showers.” Lance said, kissing Keith’s cheek. “Love you, Hotshot.”

Keith froze, looking up at Lance. “W-what?”

“I said I love you.”

Keith hid his face with an embarrassed squeak that soon turned into a purr when Lance started petting his hair. “I love you too…”

 

Once Keith and Lance were redressed, Lance carried him out of the Blue Lion and towards the showers while Keith snuggled against him sleepily. Lance loved him so much; the way his pale face seemed to have a constant glow, his small skinny frame, the way Keith’s eyes lit up when he saw something he enjoyed. Sure, Keith was spunky and a hothead, but those were just other things that Lance enjoyed about the other male.

“Come on, Keith. You have to stay awake if you’re going to take a shower.”

“Hm… okay…” He sighed, then hissed in pain suddenly. “Ow ow ow.”

“Keith? Keith, what’s wrong?” Lance sat him down in the hall and touched his head.

“I-it hurts. My back and ribs…”

Lance, afraid he hurt his lover, quickly picked Keith up again and carried him to the shower room. Lance then once again helped Keith out of his Paladin clothing, tossing them onto the floor. To Lance’s surprise, between the ten minutes it had taken to get them dressed and now, the fur going down Keith’s spine had gotten thicker and wider. The skin around it was red and puffy, not used to having to grow fur.

“Oh, man...it’s all furry back here now.”

“W-what?”

“Kolivan was right… you’re starting to look more like a Galra, and fast.”


	7. Where It All Began

By the time they made it back to Arus, Keith’s transformation was almost complete with purple fur covering more than ninety percent of his body, and judging by the constant pain he had in his tailbone he could only assume that a tail was going to be in the future. That was something he was not looking forward to, honestly.

The paladins made it a point to stay close to him but none stayed closer than Lance, who was never more than twenty feet away from the ‘halfa’. At first Keith had found it annoying, but now that they were back on Arus and they were surrounded by Arusians, some of which constantly tried to cling to Keith, he wished that he could just ride on Shiro’s shoulders to stay safe.

“What’s wrong with you?” A small Arusian Child asked, catching Keith off-guard.

“Huh?”

“You didn’t look like this before.” She said. “You didn’t have fur before… and you weren’t so scary.”

Keith frowned, looking down and using his hair to hide the one part of his face that wasn’t purple yet. His eyes. There was a raccoon-like mask around his eyes; it was something he did his best to ignore, but just like on Earth kids were harsh. “I-I, um…”

The Arusian’s mother called to her, pulling the child off and far away from him until little by little only a few Arusians were left around him. Most of them were males.

Keith’s ears went down sadly, then he jumped violently when a hand ran up his inner thigh. He turned with a snarl, looking towards whoever dared to touch him and finding that one of the male Arusians was smiling at him.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

“What do you mean? You’re an Omega; I'm an Alpha. Race doesn’t matter.” He said and Keith backed up, glancing towards Lance and Shiro who were standing with Allura. “You smell mated, though… hm… that can be changed.”

Keith felt trapped and scared, his ears down as he did his best to look scary. He was Galra! He looked like the enemy and still these small creatures were pawing at him like he was one of their own! He wanted to lash out, to show that he meant business, but the fear of causing damage to the truce they had held him back.

“No.” He said.

“Come on, Galra.” He said, reaching for Keith yet again.

Keith was about to yell at him when a bigger hand grabbed him around his thigh and a hand placed on his back, caused him to stop. He then felt himself get lifted up into the air by a familiar yellow paladin.

“He said no.” Hunk growled, and the Arusians finally seemed to back off, mumbling as they walked away. “Are you alright, Keith?”

“Man, am I glad to see you.” Keith said with a blush as Hunk set him on his shoulders. “Little freaks wouldn’t back off.”

“I could see that.” Hunk smiled. “Don’t worry, bro; we’ve all got your back.”

Keith nodded, putting his head on Hunk’s slowly as he sighed and began to purr with comfort. Hunk was like a brother to him, just like Shiro was and how Pidge was like a sister to him. Having anybody from the team close to him was calming, though he still wished that it was Lance who had saved him.

“You’re so cute.” Hunk said, patting Keith’s knee. “I can see why everybody is after you.”

“H-Hunk, you’re not-”

Hunk chuckled. “No, I’m not interested.” He promised. “I like Shay… I like her a lot… in fact, on Earth, there wasn’t anybody I was really into but there’s something about her that interests me, makes my heart race. You know?”

Keith glanced at Lance with a blush. “Y-yeah. I know.”

“Lion Goddess!” The King’s booming voice shouted. “We welcome you back to Arus! We have heard of your many adventures and feel honored to have you once again in our presence! Please allow us to provide a feast for you and your mighty warriors.”

“Thank you, your Highness, and please allow us to give you a gift.” She handed him a decent soccer-ball-sized Balmera Crystal. “I am unsure of what you could use it for, but I’m sure you can find something to do with it.”

The King looked honored as he took the crystal before turning to his people. “Prepare the feast!”

The village erupted in excitement and laughter as music began to play. Some Arusians began to dance, and the rest began cooking or making some kind of food. With the population distracted Hunk put Keith down, allowing him to run to Lance and hug onto his arm.

“Keith, you okay?” Lance asked, kissing Keith’s head.

“Yeah… just… getting unwanted attention.” He chuckled weakly and Lance glared.

“Who?”

“D-doesn’t matter; Hunk took care of it... I just… I’m afraid to defend myself, y’know? I don’t want to lash out and accidently start a war because I’m Galra…”

Lance’s gaze softened as he frowned. “Keith, that doesn’t matter, man. If somebody hurts you, hurt them back. No matter what happens, we’ll deal with with it. You matter more than anything else. At least to me; we can deal with anybody else who has a problem with that.”

“Thank you, Lance.” Keith replied with a blush.

“What has brought on this visit?” The King asked Allura, causing Keith’s ear to twitch.

“We have recently been targeted by some stray Galra ships and came to make sure that you guys weren’t in any kind of danger.” Shiro explained. “From the looks of it, you seem to be doing well, though.”

“Indeed we have; our crops are flourishing, our warriors are strong, and our population is growing. In fact, I myself am about to be given a Grandchild.”

“OH!” Allura clapped. “Congratulations! That is wonderful news!”

“Indeed; it will be my first. I simply cannot wait to meet them, and I hope that if it is a Female I would like to name her Allura; if, of course… you would allow us such a thing?”

Allura blushed. “R-really? Yes! Of course; I would be honored!”

“Thank you.” He bowed. “It is my job as King to come up with names for the infants of the village; I’m thankful that an Allura could be added soon.”

“Aw man, I love kids.” Lance said with an almost sad smile. “They’re so sweet. When are they due?” He asked the King.

“Before the next Full Moon.” He said.

“Next week.” Pidge whispered to Lance, who nodded in understanding.

“Congratulations; I hope they’re happy, healthy, and strong.” Lance smiled.

Keith instinctively sighed and looked at Lance. He looked so happy at the mention of children… and while Keith loved him more than anything else in the Universe, the idea that he couldn’t provide him with a child almost made Keith want to let Lance go. That thought only lasted a few seconds, though, before Lance held Keith’s hand and let Keith put his head on his shoulder.

“Keith?”

“Yeah?”

“Wanna take a walk?” Lance asked, and Keith nodded slowly with a blush.

“I-I thought you’d never ask.” Keith said. “I feel like I’m suffocating here.”

Lance smiled, giving Keith’s hand a gentle squeeze before leading him out of the village and towards the forest in the direction that the Castle had once been. 

 

“I don’t know if I can take this for three weeks.” Shiro said with a sigh as he sat next to Matt. “I love that he’s happy, you know? But… at the same time I don’t know if he’s doing this because he’s actually happy or if it’s just because it’s what he needs.” He watched as Keith and Lance walked into the forest.

“Well, which would you prefer: three weeks or three months?”

Shiro rubbed his temples. “I don’t know… so long as he’s happy and healthy, I don’t care… I just worry, that’s all… He’s like a little brother to me, you know?”

Matt nodded. “Yeah, I get it. I think of him the same way…” Matt then looked at Shiro with a smile. “Have you thought about dating anybody? I mean, Allura is pretty cute.”

“Yeah, she is. But she’s also kinda scary…” He looked at Matt. “Why, do you have somebody you’re into?”

“Actually, I do.” Matt said.

“Really? Um, what are they like?” Shiro asked, taking a second to question the tightness in his stomach.

“Well, they’re strong; like really strong. They’re also a natural born leader and care for everybody around them. Not to mention they’re cute as hell.” Matt looked towards Shiro with a smile before putting his hand on Shiro’s, making the taller male look at him. “And I’ve liked them for a long time.”

It took Shiro a few moments before Shiro understood what was being said, and when he did understand it his face began to heat up with a blush.

“Me?” Shiro asked with a squeak that made Matt chuckle.

“Yes, you dork.” He said, rolling his eyes before planting a kiss on Shiro’s cheek.

 

Keith sighed, standing on the edge of the bridge and looking where the castle had once sat for 10,000 years. The ground was still pretty broken up from the castle taking off and the battles that took place nearby. He sat down on the edge, looking at the sight as the land was ever so slowly taking back over where it had once been.

“Whatcha thinking about?” Lance asked, sitting down next to him.

“Just... this is where it all began, you know?” He glanced over at Lance with a smile. “Before we came here for the first time we were just a group of crazy teenagers thinking we’re having a fever dream and the next… we’re the Defenders of the Universe.”

Lance smiled. “Yeah… a lot has changed. Before then I looked up to you, a lot; to the point where I was desperate to be better than you at something. It drove me crazy that you were the best at what looked like everything. I tried, but I couldn’t be better than you… but I guess in a way… I just really wanted your attention.”

Keith blushed softly. “But… now that you have it… do you wish you didn’t?”

“What?” Lance’s voice got soft. “Keith, what are you talking about?”

“I-I don’t know. I-I feel like I’ve felt this way about you for such a long time… but… this ‘mating season’ crap is causing my head to go all fuzzy and I can’t focus. I-I’m scared… I'm scared that when this is over… I won’t keep feeling this way about you.”

Lance frowned, “Keith, whatever happens we’ll work through it.” He kissed his forehead. “I love you, and if I have to work hard for you to love me every day then I will.”

Keith felt his ears go down with a blush as he hugged Lance. “I love you too, Lance.”


	8. Jealous Red

That night after the party was over and all the paladins were asleep, Arus was attacked. It was just past three in the morning when the alarms began blaring throughout the castle, causing all of them to jump awake. They hopped out of bed and ran to the deck of the ship, getting dressed in their armor along the way.

“What’s happening?” Hunk asked as they ran in.

“We were right; A Galra ship just entered the atmosphere of Arus.”

The familiar feeling of deja-vu that washed over Keith almost made him dizzy and he had to close his eyes to calm himself down.

“Coran, Matt, and I will try to expand the partial barrier to cover the village, but with double the space to cover the shield will only last half the time.” Allura said, looking at them with a frown. She was still in her pajamas.

“Alright, we’ll try to make this quick.” Shiro promised with a smile, though the team didn’t miss the wink towards Matt. “Let’s go, you guys.”

The team went to their lions, Pidge giving Shiro a suspicious, protective look as they went.

They all got into their elevators and went to their Lion’s hangers, seeming to go without problem until Keith got to Red, who just glared at him and refused to let him in.

“Red. Come on, girl; it’s me, Keith. Let me in.” 

-I don’t know if you deserve to come in.- Red growled.

“What?! Come on, they need us out there. Please, we don’t have time for this!”

Red growled, then hearing the others calling for them she gave in. -FINE! But after this fight you and I are talking, young man!-

Keith frowned. What could Red be so heated about? He would worry about it later; right now, they had a village to protect.

Red opened her mouth, letting Keith climb in and take his seat. He grabbed the handles with a deep breath as he frowned.

“We don’t have a lot of time.” Keith said. “They’re going to put the barrier over the village and it’ll only last a few minutes.”

-Fine.- She grumbled, taking a few steps before taking off into the air with a growl, joining the rest of the Paladins in the air around the castle while the shield went up around the ship.

“What took you so long, Keith?” Lance teased and Keith sighed.

“Red is… acting up over something. But I think we’ll be okay. Let’s go before she changes her mind about all of this.”

The Galra ship above them began to hum loudly as the Ion Cannon began to charge up, pointing directly towards the Castle. The Lions scattered in different directions to avoid being hit by the Cannon when it fired. The beam went right past them, making full-blown contact to the castle and making a backlash from the contact rip trees and grass right out of the ground.

“This is bad.” Hunk said. “If that shield goes down the entire village will be destroyed…”

“Then let’s finish this before it can really get started. Form Voltron!” Shiro called out.

The formation of Voltron gave all of them a feeling that was next to impossible to describe; no matter how long they tried to explain it none of them had been successful in doing it. To Keith, it felt that while it was just him and Red together, it also felt as though the entire team was with him; their hands on his shoulders pushing him forward and encouraging him to do his best. He felt connected to everything warm and loving, and while it was hard for him to control his emotions normally he felt more control in Voltron than he did just flying around in Red.

“Pidge, form shield; Keith, form Sword.”

“On it.” They said together, doing what they told.

“Let’s take them out.” Keith growled softly.

He swung the sword as Lance and Hunk drove them towards the ship, dodging as the Ion Cannon fired again, hitting the Castle Shield and causing it to fail. It was now or never; if they failed to stop the ship before it could fire again the Castle and the Village was done for.

Once they were close enough Keith swung the sword yet again, slicing into the Cannon. The Cannon began to bubble up with heat as it folded in on itself. Voltron then rocketed forward yet again as they circled around the ship, digging the sword into it as they sliced through it.

From the ground the battle probably looked incredible with the flashes of fire that came out where the sword sliced into the gas pipes that lined inside the ship. Up close to the battle, though, it was different. Even inside the massive robots it could get really hot and uncomfortable, especially when one of the lions was right in the middle of the fight; in this case, Red. It was getting hot. Too hot. And while the fight only lasted a few minutes Keith felt seconds away from passing out by the time the ship was destroyed and Voltron disbanded.

“You guys did it!” Allura said over the speaker. “Just in time, too!”

“We’re coming back.” Shiro said, though before they actually could move further Red let out a growl.

“What is it, girl?” Keith asked then yelped as he was ejected, leaving him floating in space while Red flew back towards the castle. “OH, COME ON! What did I do?!”

Lance laughed. “I’m comin’, babe. What just happened?”

“Red just kicked me out for no reason!”

“Well, Allura did say Red was temperamental.” Shiro piped up as the Blue Lion picked him up in his jaws.

“I don’t know… I think she’s mad at me. I have to talk to her…” Keith sighed as he got up and walked over to Lance, sitting next to him. “Is Blue saying anything to you?”

“Not much; he’s laughing mostly.”

Keith blushed. “I-it’s not funny.”

Lance chuckled as well. “It’s a little funny…”

Keith mumbled softly. “O-okay… maybe a little funny… but still… Red isn’t one to get angry. Not at me, at least…”

“That’s true.” Allura said. “You two are quite close; something must be seriously bothering her if she’s angry at you… though it could cause problems in the future. You’ll have to figure out why she is upset and fix it before it gets out of control.”

“Y-yeah, I understand. I’ll do what I can to make it up to her.” Keith sighed.

“What’s the plan, Allura?” Shiro asked. “It won’t be hard for more Galra to come here and attack the Arusians.”

“I was actually working on that.” Matt said. “I think with Pidge’s and Hunk’s help I’ll be able to make a cloaking device to cover the village from aerial view.”

“Sounds like a plan; how long will it take?” Lance said.

“12 hours at least.”

“Alright, then we’ll plan to leave the planet in 18 hours. Please have it done by then. If they’re attacking Arus we can only assume our other friends will be future targets.”

The Lions landed in the Castle, allowing Keith to get out of the Blue Lion with a sigh. Keith then took off his helmet, rubbing his eyes while Lance frowned at him.

“Your face is completely changed.” He said, then turned Keith around slowly. “No sign of a tail yet, though.”

“Yeah… back hurts. Um… are you sure that you’ll still like me with a tail?”

“Of course! I’ve always had a thing for Nekos.” Lance said with a wink.

While Keith wasn’t quite sure what a ‘Neko’ was, the wink was enough to cause him to blush. He cleared his throat, his ears drooping with embarrassment.

“I’m going to go clear things up with Red.”

 

Keith frowned, reaching towards Red, who let out a soft growl. 

“Come on, Red. Talk to me… please.”

Red growled. -I can’t believe you. I thought we bonded.-

“O-of course we have!” Keith said, his ears down. “Please, Red, I’ll make it up to you; just talk to me. Tell me what I did wrong.”

Red was quiet for a moment before she laid down, her face near Keith. She let out an almost sniffle-like sound. -Blue told me that you and Lance mated in him.-

“What?” Keith felt his face heat up with a blush. “T-t-that’s what this is about? B-because Lance and I had sex instead of him and not you?!”

-Of course this is what this is about! Damn it, man; it’s been 10,000 years! Mama needs some action!-

“Well… um-” Keith rubbed the back of his neck. “Will you stop being mad at me if I promise next time we’re looking for a place we’ll come to you?”

-Really?! Yes! Of course! Yes!- Red nuzzled Keith, nearly knocking him over. -You are forgiven!-

Keith blushed. He was surrounded by perverts… but they were his perverts.


	9. Heads and Tails

Lance couldn’t stop laughing after Keith told him what had upset Red so much, and while Keith thought it was embarrassing, hearing Lance laugh made him smile. Lance could always make his knees weak, even if he wasn’t doing anything ‘sexy’. Just being around him made him feel like he was going crazy.

“Okay, haha.” Keith rolled his eyes softly. “I’m going to go take a shower.” Keith said, gathering up a handful of his clothing. “Can, um… can I sleep in your room again tonight?”

Lance blushed softly. “Y-yeah.”

Keith kissed Lance on the cheek before walking out down the hall towards the shower room. 

The castle had two shower rooms; one for boys and one for girls near the top floor. Each shower room had four stalls with a long bench against the far wall. After Keith walked into the shower room he put his clean clothes on the bench before pulling off his armor, putting it through a chute that dropped them down to the Laundry Room. He looked over at a mirror in the corner with a frown.

He looked so… different. It was almost scary how different he looked. After meeting a Galra for the first time he had nightmares about becoming one and now here he was, every inch of him covered in purple fur, even his chest and more… private areas. He looked ridiculous; he hated it, but still Lance was staying with him through it all. He loved Lance so much… All the questions he had once asked himself were now replaced by the cold, hard truth. He was in love.

Keith sighed, turning away from the mirror to do all he could not to feel self conscious about his appearance before he walked towards one of the stalls. He pushed it open and walked inside before closing the door and locking it behind him. He turned on the water, letting the warm water wash over him. He shuddered, scrunching his nose uncomfortably as the water caused his fur to stick together and press against his skin.

He put his head under the water, keeping his ears down to stop the water from getting inside them. He soaked his black hair, scrubbing it with his fingernails to clean off any dirt and grease that had been trapped against his head by his helmet. After a few moments he reached for the shampoo and began scrubbing it through his hair, making sure to get it around the base of his ears, which began to twitch at the sound of the bubbles popping. It was a weird sound but it was something he had to have heard a million times while he was human. Hearing it with these ears, though, was completely different.

Come to think of it, everything was different since he began to transform. Scents were stronger and slightly altered than what they had been before, and while some things smelled better than before sweet things smelled worse and less attractive to him than they used to. He hadn’t grown any taller or gained any more muscle mass, yet he felt stronger and more flexible. His fingers and feet couldn’t feel as much when touching something; it was incredibly strange. He himself also smelled sweeter, almost like lavender… was this part of being an ‘Omega’? Which brought up another question entirely… what exactly was an ‘Omega’ for a species like the Galra?

He had heard about omega wolves on Earth, and he knew that they were low in the ranks and were often ignored or pushed around by bigger wolves. Was it the same way with him? He wasn’t sure, but the fact that he felt so clueless about his rank made him incredibly nervous. Would him being an ‘Omega’ put not only him in danger but his friends too?

The thought of Lance or anybody on his team getting hurt because of him made his stomach clench. He almost felt sick to his stomach, so much so he knew he needed to shower. He stuck his head under the water, rinsing out his hair. He had to finish this shower, and he had to do it fast before he lost whatever food goo that he had eaten last. Keith quickly conditioned his hair, making it softer and silkier. He then grabbed the body wash off the shelf, pouring a generous amount onto his hand before scrubbing it through his fur, which had started to get itchy in the past few days, especially on his lower back.

Focus. You’ll be fine. You’ll be fine… He thought as though hoping to distract his stomach from losing his lunch down the shower drain. Just ten more minutes and you’ll be out of here and laying down… just ten more minutes… nope!

Keith covered his mouth quickly, failing to hold in whatever was left as his back arched, his ears flattened, and he threw up down the drain with a loud gag and a cough. He felt like he was melting but he was also shivering with cold chills. His stomach clenched again and again as he struggled to calm down the waves of nausea rushing through his chest, while his knees struggled to hold up his weight. He whimpered painfully as the pain slowly subsided from his stomach and back. Something was wrong; something was really wrong. Though his assumptions of a stomach bug quickly went down the drain with the vomit when he saw a tail, brushing down to his knees from the base of his tailbone.

F-final transformation… that’s what that was… I’m fine… I’m fine. But holy shit, that hurt… Okay… finish showering, then go to bed.

 

It was almost an hour before Keith got back from his shower, and he looked worse than he did when he left. Granted, his hair was clean and fluffier along with the rest of his body, but now he had a tail and was walking much slower than he had when he left.

Seeing his boyfriend in such a state made Lance scramble to his feet and help his boyfriend to the bed, laying him down.

“Keith, what happened?”

“Grew a tail in the shower…” He grunted, curling into a ball as the tail tapped against the bed almost uncontrollably. “It hurt like hell… I just… I want to sleep forever… don’t wake me up unless it’s an emergency… okay?”

Lance gave a weak smile, kissing Keith’s cheek. “I promise.” He pulled a blanket over Keith’s shivering frame. “You just rest. Okay?”

Keith hummed, moving into the touch as Lance began to play with his slick black hair. “I… love you…” Keith said sleepily.

“I love you too; now sleep.” Lance continued playing with Keith’s hair until he fell asleep. 

He had to admit he was worried about Keith; not because of the pain he was already in but the pain he was likely to have to endure when he transformed back to normal in three weeks to three months. If growing a tail hurt enough to make Keith look like he was going to faint, losing a tail somehow could easily be just as painful, if not more so.

Lance slowly climbed into the bed next to Keith, wrapping his arms around him as he did his best to keep Keith warm, or at least to get him to stop shaking. It was so frustrating to see this all happening to Keith; he had gone through so much yet all of this was still happening to him. Lance wanted to help him but he didn’t how. It was driving him crazy.

 

Lance couldn’t sleep at all as he continued getting more and worried about Keith. The raven-haired teen was curled up in pain in Lance’s bed as he whimpered and whined. He only seemed to be getting worse. Keith didn’t feel feverish; in fact, it was almost like he couldn’t get warm. Lance, eventually riddled with worry for his boyfriend, climbed out of bed and walked across the hall to Shiro’s room. He needed to gather some blankets for Keith; he needed to get him warm.

Lance gave the door a gentle tap, waiting until Shiro answered the door. Shiro’s hair was disheveled, a blush on his face as he wore nothing but his pajama pants, which were twisted.

“Lance?” Shiro cleared his throat. “W-what’s going on?”

“It’s Keith; he’s acting really sick. He’s shivering and not acting right… so I came to see if you had any spare blankets.”

Shiro nodded with a frown. “Yeah, just a second.” Shiro closed the door and Lance could hear him talking to somebody on the other side of the door, though he couldn’t tell who.

A few moments later Shiro opened the door again, two thick blankets in his arms.

“I’ll come with you.” Shiro said. “I want to make sure that he’s okay.”

Lance slowly nodded, leading Shiro back across the hallway towards his room. He opened the door and found that Keith seemed to have gotten even worse in just a few moments. Keith had pulled the two blankets they had on the bed onto the floor in a big clump which he was now laying on, curled up in a ball as he held his tail between his legs, continuing to shiver.

“He… has a tail.” Shiro pointed out and Lance nodded again.

“Yeah; a few hours ago he came in, looking really sick.”

Shiro nodded, tossing the two blankets over Keith before touching Keith’s head, causing the half-Galra to look up at him with a tired expression. “Hey; how you feeling, buddy?”

“Really bad… I’m cold but I feel like I’m melting from the inside out.”

Keith wasn’t one to complain about anything, so the fact that he was just coming out to say all of this meant a lot. Shiro tucked the blankets tighter around Keith before messing up his hair.

“Alright; I’m going to see if Coran is awake, okay? If he is, I’m going to take you to him so that he can do a medical exam on you to make sure you don’t have a virus or anything serious. He should be able to help you out; at least a little.”

Keith groaned in discomfort at the idea and curled up in a ball, hiding completely under the pile of blankets. “Don’t make me move…” He almost begged. “Everything hurts…”

Shiro frowned as Lance sat next to him and began rubbing Keith’s back.

“Babe, you have to get some help.” Lance said quietly. “You could be really sick and Coran might be the only person who can help you out.”

“In the morning? Please? I-I just want to get back to sleep…” Keith hiccuped, doing all he could not to let his voice crack as he held back tears.

Shiro and Lance looked at one another worriedly before Shiro sighed.

“How about we have him come here to look at you? Would that work better?”

Keith rubbed his eyes, his ears down before he nodded softly. “I guess…”

“I’ll stay here with him.” Lance said, his voice soft.

Shiro nodded. “Alright, I’ll be back as soon as I have Coran.” He said, then jogged out of the room and down the hallway.

“Hang in there, Keith. Everything will be alright, I promise.” He kissed his forehead lovingly.


	10. {Authors Note}

Hey guys, sorry this chapter isn't coming out as quickly as I would like it too. The 4th of July weekend is hard on my family so it might take until the 5th, but don't worry it's coming soon!

I love all the comments and it makes continuing this story even easier for me because I know my effort is not being wasted and that people are really enjoying it, so please continue to comment and support this <3 I also love hearing suggestions on how to make the story better in the future so feel free to add those too. 

Thank you all again! Have a good 4th of July for those who celebrate it and great Weekend for those who don't!


	11. I Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So I managed to finish this chapter last night and decided to get it posted a little early because I'm going to Death Valley tomorrow and won't be back for a day or two so it'll be a little hard for me to get the chapter after this one!
> 
> I'm loving all the comments on this story and if you have any thoughts please comment them! I do read all comments and a lot of which help me figure out what to do in following chapters that I'm struggling with.

Coran was about as dumbfounded as Lance and Shiro had been a few minutes earlier. Keith’s body temperature was normal yet he was shivering and holding his stomach. Keith was clearly in a lot of pain, though it wasn’t obvious why he was in pain. He had some theories but nothing that really made sense to him or made sense in the situation. He was, in a human term, ‘stumped’.

“For now, all I can do is give you is some pain medication and hope that it's just pain from forming the tail.” Coran sighed, playing with his mustache as he pulled out a small capsule, putting it in Keith’s hand. “If it is, then we won’t know how long this will last.”

“I’ll be fine.” Keith grunted, though he took the pill anyways. “I’ll be just fine with just a little bit more rest.”

“I hope you’re right.” Lance said, handing Keith a bottle of water so Keith could swallow the capsule without any problems.

“How is the cloaking device coming along?” Shiro asked, watching Keith pop the pill into his mouth and guzzling a big portion of the water.

“Good.” Coran smiled. “It should be done within the next ‘hour’ and then when the sun rises, we will take off and head out towards Olkarion to make sure that they are safe as well as find out more things concerning what was going on with the Galra.” He smiled. “That should take about a day to a day-and-a-half as long as we don’t get into any trouble.”

“Sounds like a plan. We should let Keith rest while he can…”

Coran and Shiro walked out of the room, leaving Keith and Lance alone together in order to help one another. Lance hesitated for a moment before he crawled into the nest of blankets, curling up against Keith. Keith curled up against him, purring softly as his shivering continued for only a few more minutes before he fell asleep. Lance sighed softly, the concern for his love still strong. Keith needed him, and Lance had no idea how to help him feel better.

Lance rubbed his back gently before wrapping his hands around his waist and spooning him. “We’ll figure things out, Keith; I promise.” 

 

Eventually Lance couldn’t handle the heat coming off of Keith as well as the mountain of blankets over him, so he wiggled out from under the blankets and got to his feet. It was hot, uncomfortably hot to him, but still Lance was thankful that it was at least comfortable for Keith. Lance crossed the room, opening the door and walking out into the hallway.  
He could hear Pidge typing down the hall from him, working hard on the cloaking device. He hardly understood half the things that she did on the computer but he did understand that she was easily the smartest person on the team. That, he had no doubt about. Though he also knew that because she was so smart, she often pushed herself beyond what she could physically stand.

Deciding to see if he could talk her into taking a break, he walked down the hall and into the lab where she was working. He smiled when he saw her and walked over, putting his hand on the desk.

“Whatcha doing?” He asked, hoping to make her smile by pulling the ‘stupid’ card.

“Working on the Cloaking Device.” She said, not looking up at him.

“Ahh, I forgot that was supposed to be a thing.”

“Yeah, Matt and Coran were supposed to help me but Matt is off doing who knows what or Coran just took off with Shiro not too long ago. So, once again, working on my own.”   
She was clearly tired and didn’t look like she was doing the best as she kept rubbing her eyes and hitting the BACKSPACE key. She needed help during this last little bit of building time.

“Anything I can do to help?” Lance offered, which finally got Pidge to look up at him.

“I don’t know; can you add in possible variables including time, the location of certain stars, weather changes and other such changes that could happen to the landscape in the future?”

Lance chuckled. “Nope, I have no idea how to do any of what you just said. But, I can do this.” He said, lifting up his shirt slightly as he began to roll his stomach in a wave-like motion.

Pidge sat there, watching him for a moment before she let out a snort of laughter. “Great, Lance. I’m sure that will be great in our next fight.”

“I knew there had to be something I could do to help!” He cheered happily.

Pidge chuckled for a few more seconds before she looked at him. “I thought you went to bed.” She pointed out.

“I did… Keith isn’t doing too well so I left so that he could keep sleeping without me waking him up with my rolling over and stuff. Plus Keith has like, a million blankets on him right now and I can’t sleep with that much heat, man. I like my room cool and my pillows fluffed.”

Pidge laughed as she rolled her eyes slowly. “You’re such a dork.”

Lance gasped dramatically. “How dare you! I am a beautiful being who is fifty levels of fabulous.”

“Oh? Well, no matter what you are I’ll always be 20% cooler than you.” Pidge winked.

He was about to reply before he let out a snort. “Wait a second… did you just quote My Little Pony?”

Pidge blushed slightly, looking away. “No…” She said, then looked at him. “B-but the real questions is, how did you even know that could have been from My little Pony?”

The two looked at each other for a moment before they both began to laugh again. Despite how they might have acted towards one another, they still loved each other and considered the other one family, though it was hard to think anything less than the other after they had already been through so much together. Lance trusted Pidge with his life and could only hope that she trusted him the same way.

“So… Keith’s not doing too well?” Pidge wondered and Lance looked down with a slight sigh.

“No… I mean, we have no idea how to help him. I mean, it’s clear that growing a tail hurt him more than anything else so far but now I’m really worried… what if he has to regrow a tail every time this happens? What if it falls off like a lizard's tail? I-if it does, how much will that hurt him?!” Lance began to panic at the thought of his boyfriend suffering like this again and again.

“Lance, calm down.” Pidge smiled. “We should have asked more questions when we were told about this… but I guess it was because we were all in just such a state of shock that we froze up and now we’re clueless about what to do. Whatever happens, though, we’re a team and we’ll be there to help him no matter what happens in the future.”

Lance sucked in a deep and calming breath. “Right… you’re right. Just… I can’t help but worry about him. This is the first time I’ve felt like this about anybody before. I-I mean, I’ve had dates before, and girlfriends and even a boyfriend before… but… this is the first time I’ve actually felt… ‘In love’... you know?”

Pidge nodded. “I know… I haven’t known you for long but I can tell by the look in your eyes that there’s something different in them. You’re happier than I’ve ever seen you.”

A blush formed its’ way onto Lance’s face as he looked away slowly. “R-right. I just want to make sure he’s going to be okay, you know? We’ve all been through so much so far and to see any one of us struggling this much is enough to make all of us feel it…”

“Yeah… Well, you’ve caused enough of a distraction, but I should get back to work.” Pidge smiled. “I’ll be done in less than an hour. Hunk is in the kitchen, though; I don’t think he could sleep either.”

“Seems to be going around…” Lance mumbled, then walked out of the lab and made his way towards the kitchen. Maybe joining Hunk for a midnight snack would help him calm himself down. He couldn’t keep stressing himself out so much about Keith; he just had to make sure to stay calm and hope for the best in the future.


	12. (Authors Note... Again)

Hey guys...

So I have some good news and bad news. The good news is I am still working on this story, I promise.

The bad news is that because of a rather... violent argument between my mother and my father I'm currently staying at my Fiance's Grandmother's until things at home get figured out. From what I heard both of my parents are still fighting and while I'm not sure how long this will last I'm using this quiet time away from home to work on Chapters. They haven't been edited but once they are I'll start posting again.

Thank you all so much for being patient with me, I really need the little extra time to figure out things in my own life with both my parents, my Fiance, and my health (both physical on metal (stupid anxiety))

The next chapter will be out within tomorrow or the day after. Thank you again.


	13. Not Alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this took so long you guys, but here it is. I'll hopefully have the next one up tomorrow depending on if everything ends up okay on my end. After that there's Ren Faire in my town so while I might not be able to post any chapters durring those three days I'm going to keep writing offline. (My Fiance is one of the Dancers so I'm going to be there everyday for her.)

Shiro rolled his shoulder with a deep breath, trying to keep himself calm. It was hard to stay patient with everything when he thought about how bad Keith had gotten in the past few days. Keith was the closest thing he had to a family, and to see him suffering the way he was without being able to do anything to help him was making him go stir-crazy.

He wanted to get Keith off of this planet. He knew that it wasn’t Arus that was causing Keith so much pain, but he knew that Keith had already been pawed at by some of the local Arusians and he was beginning to worry that even that small amount of trauma would add to the pain and stress the teen was feeling.

-Come on, Shiro, you need to relax. Keith is almost twenty years old, not to mention he has Lance to watch his back when you’re not with him. It’s not just you and Keith against the world anymore.-

Shiro sighed softly then jumped when pale, freckle-covered arms wrapped around his ribs and pulled him into a tight hug.

“What are you thinking about?” Matt asked, pressing his face against Shiro’s back.

Shiro rubbed Matt’s hand softly. “Keith. I’m worried about him.”

“Is that why you left so suddenly?”

“Yeah… sorry about that. He’s not doing too well. Hopefully he’ll be okay in a few hours after getting more sleep… but I’m worried about him.”

“You guys grew up together, Shiro. It’s natural for you to be worried about him.”

Shiro nodded. “We went to the same orphanage until Keith was 9 and I was 11. He and I were the closest thing to family either of us had… but then I was adopted and we lost contact again. I thought I would never see him again until we were put in the same team at the Garrison. It was such a surprise to see him again; I almost didn’t recognize him. He had grown so much. When I finally recognized him, I started to cry; I felt so guilty. I promised I would never leave him at the orphanage alone, and then when we were all on a team I thought I would be able to make up for it… I was wrong… you and I both vanished without a trace.” Shiro could feel his chest tightening.

“You couldn’t have known that he wasn’t going to picked for the mission, Shiro.”

“I know, but I can’t help but imagine what he went through during the year we were gone. Getting kicked out of school and having nowhere to go but back into the house that his father vanished from? Spending that entire time there with nobody to talk to about what you’re feeling… I-I know he’s not much of a talker anyways, but still… I should have been there for him. The fact that I wasn’t makes me want to do all I can possibly do to make up for it. He’s so frightened about everything that’s happening to him… and for him to be in pain on top of that-”

“You can’t blame yourself, Shiro.” Matt said, walking around to face him. “None of this is your fault. What’s important now is for us to be there for him, here and now, to help him through all of this.” 

Shiro sniffled, rubbing his eyes softly as he did all he could do to keep his composure. He couldn’t cry, not right now. Not in front of Matt. He needed to stay strong for Keith and the rest of his team, especially now of all times. He cleared his throat, wrapping his arms around Matt as the two hugged and Shiro finally managed to calm himself down.

“Right; you’re right.”

Pidge walked over with a smile. “The cloaking device is finished and in place. We’re ready to test it out.”

“Sounds good.” Shiro said as he and Matt pulled away from one another. “I’m sure we’re all excited to get off of this planet.”

“Yeah.” Pidge sighed. “I can’t wait to go back to Olkarion.”

“Yeah, you made a lot of friends the last time we were there.” Shiro said.

The three of them made their way towards the ship’s exit, staying close together as they made their way out and into the bright sun.

“What’s on Olkarion?” Wondered Matt.

Pidge lit up at the question. “An incredible race called the Olkari! They’re smart; like, really smart. Imagine the smartest person on Earth, multiply that by ten, and you’re not even close to how smart these guys are. They managed to make weapons and houses out of trees, Matt! Trees! Without any tools! Just because they understood that nature and machinery are all made out of the same energies and designs! They had binary-controlled plant-based mecha! And… if they hadn’t helped me, I probably would have never unlocked the Green Lion’s special ability, so there’s that.”

Matt nodded, clearly trying to grasp the information his sister was telling him. Shiro knew that if Matt was still on Earth he would never have believed her, but after how many months he had been in space and how much he had already seen; it was likely he had already seen or heard of weirder.

“I can’t wait to meet them and see what they’re capable of.”

“Prepare to have your mind blown, bro.” Pidge grinned.

 

Connecting the cloaking device to the Balmera Crystal they had provided the village was the last step they needed to get it to work, and as soon as it was fully connected a bright light shot into the air, seeming to explode a few hundred feet over their head. The explosion was small but incredibly bright as a bubble seemed to expand further and further until the entire village was covered.

“How’s it looking, Coran?” Pidge asked over the com in her helmet.

Coran, who was still in the castle, chirped in with a laugh. “Well, I can’t see the village physically and our radars aren’t picking it up either. I can only assume that it means it’s working!”

“Yes!” Pidge and Matt gave each other high-fives before smiling at Shiro, beaming with pride.

“Good job, Katie.” Matt smiled at her before giving her a hug. “You did it.”

“I couldn’t have done it without help.” She smiled, hugging him back. “I’ve learned a lot from everybody on here; without the knowledge everybody’s shared with me… I’d probably still be working on it.”

Matt chuckled. “Katie, you’ve always been smarter than me; you’ve just never realized it until now… you were too self-conscious on Earth, but here you’re free to be yourself and I’m happy you’ve been able to do it.”

Pidge’s face began to warm up with the heat of a blush as she looked away slowly. “T-thanks, Matt…”

He kissed her forehead, the way their parents did when they were proud of them or were doing their best to comfort them. It was something she hadn’t realized she had missed until now. It was comforting in a way, but it also hurt as she remembered her mother stuck alone on Earth and her father still lost somewhere in space.

“I miss them too.” He said, holding her close as he rubbed her back lovingly. “We’ll get home to them, I promise.”

Pidge hiccupped and nodded slowly. “R-right… I know we will… It’s just really hard knowing that Dad is out there somewhere. He could be hurt, or scared, o-or worse… and we’re here… having fun instead of doing all we can to find him right now.”

“I’m sure he would rather know that we’re helping people who still need us out there in the universe; stopping people from being enslaved and tortured rather than trying to save just him. From what I heard he was at a work camp, so while it’s not the best place for him it’s also not the worst place.”

Pidge sniffled softly as she nodded.

“I’ll tell you what, though. You do what you can to help others and I will focus on finding out information on Dad. If I find anything you’ll be the first person to know.”

“Really?” She looked up at him as Matt smiled.

“Of course; he’s my dad too.” He said, messing up her hair. “Now let’s get back to the castle so we can get out of here.”


	14. (Last Authors note for a while... I hope XD)

I am so so sorry this next chapter is taking so long to post but please don't worry I am still working on this story, in fact I have 3 chapters that just need to be edited before I can post them... unfortunately I have been in and out of the Emergency Room all week because of chest pain and having a hard time breathing, on top of my Anxiety this can end up being a deadly combination.

And while I'm not doing much better I'm at a point now that I can hopefully work more on the next chapters and they should (hopefully) be posted by Monday night. At least one maybe even two. Thank you all for being so patient with me, it means a lot.


	15. Deep Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The name of the song in this chapter is "Letra De Como Fue De." By Beny More  
> (I think XD)

The rumbling of the ship taking off woke Keith up from his seemingly dreamless state. It was also startling for the reason that he could feel something running up and down his outer leg, yet he was alone in his nest-like bed. He scrambled out of the nest, putting up his fists as he got ready for a fight. He became even more startled when he found the feeling was following him around in a circle. It took him far too long to realize that the feeling was coming from his tail, which until now he had forgotten about. He growled at it, feeling his ears go down as he grabbed his tail tightly in his fists with a snarl.

“Listen, you.” He growled. “If you don’t behave I’m going to tuck you into a belt.” He grumbled at it, then flinched as his stomach growled loudly. “Stay out of it, you.” He mumbled.

The door opened, causing him to jump with a blush as Lance and Hunk walked in with a tray full of different kinds of foods.

“Oh, you’re awake.” Lance said with a smile. “We made some food for you.”

Keith smiled softly. “Um… t-thanks, I guess. You didn’t have to.” He said softly.

“We wanted to.” Hunk smiled. “We did what we could to make it taste like human food because we knew you haven’t been feeling well and thought your stomach could use something familiar-tasting.”

Keith sat down on the bed as the tray was put down next to him. He looked over it, examining it. Strangely enough, nothing but the food-goo looked or sounded good to him. He grabbed the spork next to it and began to eat, doing what he could to eat all of it. His friend and the man he felt so head-over-heels in love with had worked so hard to make it; he had to at least try.

He didn’t understand why the glue-tasting substance suddenly tasted like it was the best thing in the world, but he wasn’t going to stop eating just because it had tasted strange to him a few weeks ago. He purred, his ears perking up as he ate more. Maybe Hunk and Lance had done something to make it taste better.

Unfortunately the food he had been given didn’t last as long as he wanted it to, and within a few moments it was gone. He was happy though, even if his stomach occasionally rumbled in dislike of the food he had just subjected it to. It was strange, and he wasn’t the only one to realize that his appetite was a little off today.

“Woah, how are you feeling after all of that?” Lance chuckled slightly.

Keith blushed softly with a chuckle. “I-I guess I was hungrier than I thought.” He said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Thank you, guys; it was great.”

Hunk beamed proudly. “Great! We’ll try to make it again so that everybody else can have some!” He cheered, then picked up the tray and walked out of the room, leaving Keith and Lance alone.

“How are you feeling?” He asked, slowly taking Keith’s hand. “Do you need anything?”

“I’m feeling better, I think.” Keith admitted. “Around where my tail is in the back hurts a little bit but not much. I still feel a little cold but not as much as I did last night, so… I’m thinking about going to the Training Deck and seeing what this Galra state can really do.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Lance winked. “Can I watch?”

Keith blushed again. “Well… sure. I mean, I-I can’t stop you.”

Lance beamed happily as he watched Keith walk out of the room and followed him down the hall with a slight skip and hop behind him.

 

In the end Lance wasn’t the only one who wanted to see what Keith could do in his new form. The entire Castle’s population came to the Training Deck, each of them more curious than the last to see him move and fight. To say that all the pressure made Keith nervous was an understatement. He had never liked being watched when he did anything, and feeling that this was such a big thing that he thought he would experience alone… only made it that much worse. It was to the point that he was beginning to feel like he was going to be sick again.

The others were just as curious as he was to figure out how this worked, what he could do, and how it would affect him in future battles; though that didn’t stop him from feeling incredibly nervous about it all.

Sucking in a breath, he popped his knuckles and got ready for the first bot, which would be set at Level One and he would work it up from there to his highest human level, which was Four. Part of him felt ready for this battle, while the rest of him still felt unsure about his body working the way he wanted to.

Keith looked at his hands. His nails were half an inch longer than normal and they came to a claw-like point at the end. They would make for good weapons, as well as the sharp canines that had gotten longer over the past few days. His large ears helped him listen to every movement the bot made as it moved, and his tail seemed to allow him to keep his balance more smoothly as he began to run around the bot. He was able to go surprisingly fast, though he guessed that without his shoes he wouldn’t be able to grip the floor and he would slip and fall.

He snarled loudly, feeling an instinct rushing over him as he glared and spread his fingers. He then rushed over to the bot, doing a roundhouse kick to the bot’s side. It was knocked to the side before it slid to an eventual stop. Once it was at a complete stop Keith ran at him again, swinging violently with his claw-like hands and snarling loudly.

Keith’s sharp claws ripped through the metal of the bot effortlessly, as though his nails were now stronger than diamonds. It was impressive, but also terrifying at the same time. To see that he could do all this damage so quickly with so little effort was confusing to him. He had always had to push himself harder; this was too easy. The fight only lasted a few moments before the bot collapsed into a heap of scattered and broken metal.

Keith hardly felt tired at all but he did feel … angry. He wasn’t sure why he felt so angry, but he felt like he was a few moments from either ripping something else apart or curling up and crying. Keith was about to call off the training exercise when a second bot fell onto the floor, this one at a higher skill level than the previous one.

He clenched his fist, getting ready for the bot to rush at him. The bot kept low and moved fast, likely having learned Keith’s movements from the previous bot. Keith watched before sliding out of the way, swinging his arm harshly backwards when the bot passed him, slamming his elbow into the back of its’ neck and causing it to stumble before falling to the ground. It then scrambled back up, kicking Keith in the stomach and causing a surprising amount of pain to rush through him.

Keith gasped in pain, holding his stomach as tears pricked in the corners of his eyes, letting himself fall to his knees as he gasped. He completely forgot about the robot as his vision was filled with colored spots while a loud ringing echoed through his ears. He was struggling to breathe; he felt like he was going throw up at any second simply because of the pain.

What was wrong? Why was this all happening to him? He didn’t understand, but he wasn’t sure that he wanted to understand, either. This was all happening so fast; he had no idea how to handle it all.

A strong hand gripped his shoulder before Shiro knelt down in front of him, looking down at him.

“Keith? Keith, what’s wrong?”

“I-it’s nothing; I just…” He gasped in pain, curling up into a ball. “M-my stomach really hurts; I-I think I ate too much lunch…”

“You just got kicked in the stomach, Keith; you think maybe that’s why you hurt?” Pidge asked, a worried frown on her face.

Shiro and Lance looked at each other, clearly not sure about Keith’s excuse, but they helped him to his feet anyways before helping him walk out of the room to a place where he could sit comfortably and try to relax. Even sitting through the pain was intense and he felt like he was going to pass out at any second. He couldn’t breathe; it was all so much for his senses to try and take in. It was almost like no matter how much air he got into his lungs he couldn’t get it back out.

Lance began to run his fingers through Keith’s hair softly, putting their heads together as he softly began to sing. “Cómo fue… no sé decirte cómo fue… no sé explicarme qué pasó… pero de ti me enamoré.”

Keith could feel himself relaxing as he listened to Lance’s incredible voice, and while he didn’t understand what Lance was saying the fact that Lance was taking the time to sing to him was enough to help him try to calm down.

“Fue una luz… que iluminó todo mi ser… tu risa como un manantial… regó mi vida de inquietud…”

The pain slowly began to ebb away as he wrapped his arm around Lance’s neck, hugging him as he calmed his breathing and let himself be pulled away by the words.

“Fueron tus ojos o tu boca… fueron tus manos o tu voz… fue a lo mejor la impaciencia… de tanto esperar tu llegada… Más no sé…”

Keith closed his eyes, his ears twitching softly as his tail wrapped around his leg softly. How was it that something as simple as this was helping him so much?

“No sé decirte cómo fue... no sé explicarme qué pasó… pero de ti me enamoré…” Lance’s song soon ended, making Keith whimper at the lack of noise. It had made the pain stop and he was thankfully much more calm than he had been a few moments ago. “You okay, Keith?”

“I-I am now… how did you know that would work?”

Lance blushed. “I-it always worked for my siblings when they were hurt or scared… I-I was hoping it would be the same for you and what do you know… it worked.” He kissed Keith’s forehead. “What happened out there?”

“I don’t know. I guess the Galra have a weak stomach.” He guessed with a soft shrug. “Or I really did eat too much.”

Keith looked up at Shiro as he lifted up Keith’s shirt softly, examining the fur under his shirt. He wished he could see the skin underneath to look for a bruise, but there was nothing he could do about that. Shiro frowned, then gave Keith a gentle pat on his head.

“We should take you to the medical bay and see if there’s something we can do about your stomach pain. It’s not the first time you’ve been kicked there, but… this time it really seemed to hurt you…”

Keith smiled, trying to make Shiro feel better. “It just caught me off guard, is all. I’m feeling better; I just needed a little while. I’ll be fine, Shiro. I promise.”

Once again, Lance and Shiro looked at each other, unsure what to do about the stubborn Galra between them, but they decided not to press it and they backed down. At least for the moment. They had a day-and-a-half before they reached Olkarion, which should be plenty of time to figure out how to help their friend before they landed there.


	16. Here For You

Keith laid down on Lance’s bed, rubbing his stomach as a growl radiated from it. It wasn’t the sound to suggest he was hungry, but rather the one that said he was still in a little bit of pain. The sound caught him off-guard, making him jump slightly before he relaxed again. It was so strange how weird everything felt in this state; everything was heightened but at the same time he felt like some part of him was missing.

He rolled onto his side, taking his tail in his hands as he examined it. It was strange how much it looked like a purple lion’s tail, with short fur all down it and a puff of longer, darker purple fur at the end. The fur was incredibly soft, almost like rabbit or chinchilla fur, although he had only met a chinchilla once in his life. He twisted the tail gently and ran the fur between his fingers, the strange feeling causing his tail to flick side to side.

Having a tail almost felt like having another finger or toe; a really long one that came out of his tailbone. He could move it just as easily, but because it was so new to him it often seemed to take on a life of its’ own. It liked to wrap around his leg or his stomach, which would startle Keith, especially when he didn’t know it was coming. When it wrapped around his legs he would trip and nearly fall, and it happened far more often than he liked. So far, he knew it was going to be a learning experience with his new situation, and he hadn’t been learning very well yet.

He grunted as his stomach let out another growl, but this one seemed to set him over the edge. He scrambled to his feet and to the trash can in the corner. His stomach heaved as a wave of nausea rushed through him, causing him to scrunch up his nose with a cough. All the food he had enjoyed less than three hours ago was coming back up with a vengeance and he struggled to keep any of it down. He could feel his ears going down while his tail stood on end, the remaining pain washing over him until nothing came out and he was left there dry-heaving into the can.

“Keith, I brought you some-” Lance began as the door opened. A worried look instantly appeared on his face and he rushed to Keith’s side. “Keith! Keith, what happened?!”

“I-I just started feeling sick again…” He whimpered softly, letting himself relax as Lance rubbed his back lovingly.

“Keith, you should have called for me.” Lance grabbed his water bottle off of the bedside table and handed it to Keith, who gulped it down as quickly as he could to get rid of the bile taste in the back of his throat. “I would have been here in a second.”

“I-I couldn’t.” He sucked in a breath. “It hit me too fast, too suddenly.” He put his hand on his chest as his heart began to calm down.

“Is there anything I can do?” Lance wondered softly.

“I-I don’t know… I mean, I know it’s weird, but… can I get some food?”

“Food?” It didn’t make sense to Lance as to why somebody who had suddenly been sick only a few seconds ago was asking for food again, but he didn’t want to question Keith when he was in this state. “Yeah, um, sure. What do you want?”

“Just normal food goo, but… maybe a little overcooked? I don’t know; I’m just craving something crunchy.”

Lance gave Keith a loving grin before helping him to his feet and moving him over to the bed, helping him lay down. “Okay, you stay here and drink some water. I’ll be back in a few minutes with your food.” Lance gave him a soft kiss on the forehead, causing Keith to purr softly as he closed his eyes, leaning into the kiss.

Keith almost instantly felt like nothing was going to go wrong around him. He relaxed, letting himself sink into the pillows as he pulled the blanket tightly around his shoulders.

Lance smiled softly, then walked out of the room, leaving Keith once again alone with his thoughts.

 

“Keith! Keith, stop!” Lance grabbed Keith’s hand, stopping him as Keith tried to sneak off after returning from the Marmora base. “What happened? Why did the Red Lion attack?”  
Keith was doing all he could to not let the pain get to him. He had managed to hide his face but at the current moment he was about to fall apart. Everything hurt, especially his shoulder, which he could feel bleeding again. If he didn’t take care of it soon he would start bleeding through his paladin suit. He couldn’t keep pushing himself; he needed to get properly patched up before Lance saw him. He couldn’t collapse, not again. The last thing they needed was the Red Lion attacking inside the castle to get to him. Not to mention if Lance saw him in this state he would never let him live it down.

Keith tried to keep his breathing calm, but it was becoming harder and harder to do so when he was in so much pain. He could hear Shiro still talking to Princess Allura in the other room that they had left him in, and he wished for nothing more than Shiro to rush to his rescue as he always used to.

“N-nothing happened.” The world was getting blurry and he was feeling dizzy.

“That’s bullshit! Keith, the only time she has ever acted like that is when you’re in danger or in a lot of pain. Come on, talk to me!” Lance reached out, touching Keith’s shoulder.

Keith let out a howl of pain at the touch, whipping around to avoid further pain. Between the pain in his shoulder, the dizziness he was feeling, and the exhaustion from the day he had, the movement made him fall backwards and land on his back. Everything was too much now; he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t see, he was too tired to do anything but lay there as he bled slowly through his suit.

“Keith! Keith, you’re hurt! Why didn’t you say anything?!”

“Not- n-not important… just need to… to take a nap… I’ll… um…”

Keith was helpless to do anything but let Lance help him to his feet and out of the room towards the healing pods. Keith didn’t want to use a pod, though he knew that it was important that he did. It was too bad now for him not to. He needed the pod, whether he liked it or not.

Every step they took felt like a mile to Keith, who was struggling to keep up with Lance, though he suspected that Lance was hardly moving at all. There was no rushing him, but at the same time Keith knew that Lance was doing all he possibly could to get him to the pods as quickly as he could.

The second they were in the Pod Room, Lance sat Keith down and began to pull off his armor, dropping the pieces onto the ground. Keith wanted to move away from him but he was too weak to do anything about it.

“Stop struggling.” Lance said, helping Keith to his feet and to the pod, the raven-haired teen wearing nothing but the black spandex from under his armor. “We have to get you in a pod.”

“No…” Keith whimpered, trying to pull away.

“Why not, Keith? If we don’t do something, you could die.”

“But… what if… what if I don’t wake up… what if something happens if…” He stumbled slightly. “I can’t…”

“Yes, Keith. You can. I’ll be here the entire time. When you wake up, I’ll be right outside.”

Keith was beginning to black out; he was completely helpless as Lance pushed him into one of the pods as the door closed in front of him.

“Goodnight, Keith. Deep breaths; it doesn’t hurt, I promise.”

Keith sucked in a breath, his eyes closing as the world around him went black.

 

Keith opened his eyes, thankful to once again see the four walls he had gotten used to since this mating season began, as well as an incredible aroma of food. It used to make him feel sick, but now it was the only thing he felt he could hold down.

He could smell the food as it got closer to his room, giving him enough time to sit back up and calm his stomach again before Lance walked in.

“Did you manage to take a nap?” He asked, making Keith nod.

“A short one, yeah.” Keith smiled, pulling the tray onto his lap before he examined the goo. It was a darker green than it normally was, likely because it had been cooked longer and the smell it was giving off was weird. It almost would have been a disgusting smell, though Keith didn’t care about that right now. He was so hungry.

Keith grabbed a spork, scooping up a large amount of the goo before putting into his mouth with a hum at the slight crunch it made with every bite. After the first bite the food didn’t last much longer, and Keith hadn’t even realized that Lance was attempting to make conversation with him until it was gone.

“Keith?”

Keith looked over at him, licking his finger softly before he blushed. “Y-yeah?”

“Are you okay?”

“I guess I was hungrier than I thought.” He chuckled. “Thank you.”

“Anytime. But Keith… I think that we should tell Coran that you’re throwing up more and more.”

“What? Why?”

“Because, Keith; out of all of us, you can’t afford to get sick. You’re in heat, which already seems to make it hard for you to function during the day, but you can’t be getting sick all the time at night.” Lance said, rubbing his back.

Keith sighed softly. “I know you’re right about that, but… Lance, there’s so much about being a Galra we don’t know, and I don’t know about you but I have no idea what an Omega is. This could just be something I have to deal with until the end of my mating season.”

“Alright… but I think we should talk to the Olkari when we land; they might have answers for us.”

“I will.” Keith smiled. “If, of course, I can get one away from Pidge long enough to do so.”


	17. Cry Baby

The next morning Keith was able to walk around without any pain in his stomach, any dizziness, or nausea of any kind. Aside from the fact that he had ears, a tail, and felt incredibly horny all the time, he felt like himself again. The others seemed to notice this and they were all beginning to enjoy themselves again.

Pidge and Matt were examining Shiro’s arm, trying to figure it out and see if there was anything about it that they could use and see if they could use that same type of technology in their own inventions, while Shiro used his other hand to play chess with Hunk. Allura, of course, was fascinated by the game and was watching, asking as many questions as she could think of. Coran was doing what he could to make sure the ship was ready to keep moving and would be able to fight if it came to it, which left Keith and Lance around talking and laughing.

“No way, dude.” Lance said. “In a fight between Toothless and Stormfly, Toothless would win; no competition.”

“What? No.” Keith laughed. “Toothless has Hiccup to tell him to stop before he goes too far, while Stormfly has Astrid who hates to lose. Stormfly would go until she caused some serious damage or until Astrid finally called her off.”

Keith played with his tail as he talked, trying to get the fur on the tip of it to stand on end. 

“I guess, but Toothless is faster and can cause more damage quicker.”

Keith laid down, putting his head on Lance’s lap as he looked up at him. “Yeah, but Stormfly has those… spikey things all over that she can shoot out.”

The two laughed, continuing their argument for a little while longer before it eventually died down and Lance began running his fingers through Keith’s hair, causing him to purr happily.

Lance then began to hum the way he often did when he was bored or doing something he enjoyed. This song caused Keith’s ears to perk up as he smiled at the tune. It was one that Keith knew and he remembered his dad playing the song when he was still on Earth.

“Wise men say, only fools rush in, but I can’t help, falling in love with you. Shall I stay? Would it be a sin? If I can’t help falling in love with you….”

Keith hesitated for a second before he sucked in a breath and joined in. “Like a river flows, surely to the sea; Darling, so it goes, some things are meant to be.”

Lance smiled, sitting Keith up for a moment before pulling the dark-haired boy to his feet. He put his hands on Keith’s hips while Keith wrapped his arms shyly around his neck and nuzzled against him softly as they began to sway and sing softly together.

“Take my hand. Take my whole life too, for I can’t help falling in love with you. Like a river flows, surely to the sea, darling so it goes, some things are meant to be.”

Keith closed his eyes, humming as Lance finished the song. 

“Take my hand. Take my whole life too, for I can’t help falling in love with you. For I can’t help… falling in love with you.”

He finished the song, kissing Keith’s temple as he let out a purr and blushed into Lance’s neck.

“Awww.” Pidge spoke up. “I ship it.”

“Same.” Hunk said with a smile.

“Excuse me, but what does a ship have to do with the two of them dancing?” Allura asked.

Pidge chuckled. “A ‘ship’ is essentially when you like to imagine two people together in a romantic relationship.” She smiled. “The ‘ship’ in ‘relationship’ is where we get it.”

“Oh!” She clapped happily. “That makes sense, I suppose, in a ‘Earthling’ kind of way.”

“I’m surprised you guys even know Elvis.” Shiro said. “I mean, I know that he was the King and everything but that was almost a hundred years ago.”

Keith blushed and Lance stuck out his tongue.

“You know what they say, Shiro. Real music never dies.” Lance smiled for a second.

Keith chuckled softly, pushing Lance away softly before Shiro spoke up yet again.

“It’s good to see you moving around again, Keith.” Shiro said, flinching as his robotic arm glitched softly as a wire got pinched. “You feeling any better?”

“Kinda. I don’t feel sick right now anyways, but I feel really… you know.” He blushed. “Guess this mating season is still in effect.”

“Yes, and from the way the Marmora put it this will last for three weeks to three months. Either your mating season is really just getting started or it’s going to reach its’ peak in a few days. After about three days or so you’ll slowly transform back to normal.” Coran explained.

Keith frowned at the thought. Would it hurt as much as it did transforming in the first place?

“You alright?” Shiro asked him, clenching and unclenching his fist as the siblings finished messing with it.

“Y-yeah.” Keith said, forcing a smile. “Just thinking too much, I guess.” He chuckled timidly.

“We’ll be here for you, Keith.” Hunk assured. “I promise.”

“Thanks, guys… but I can’t keep putting you all out like this. It’s not right…”

“What is not right is that you have to go through this in the first place.” Allura said, crossing her arms over his chest. “It simply doesn’t seem right that you’re in this much pain. My Father and Zarkon were friends for years, yet I never saw him in pain.” She looked at Coran.

“It’s true…” He said, putting his hand on his chin. “I highly doubt this ‘mating season’ is a new thing, so Zarkon should have gone through it as well, though Zarkon never showed any distress.”

“Maybe because he’s a full-blooded Galra?” Matt suggested. “Keith is the only person we’ve met so far with even a little bit of Galra in their blood; it could be that small amount trying to take over that’s causing him so much pain.”

Keith enjoyed the fact that his friends were so worried about him, but at the same time he hated being the center of their conversations. Even while he was in the room it felt as though they were talking behind his back; a feeling he was all too familiar with.

“No…” He thought, crossing his arms over his chest as his stomach seemed to do a flip, making him feel slightly nauseous. “This isn’t like it was at school or in the Orphanage; these guys are my friends. They really do care for me; they’re not pretending… at least, I hope not…” He glanced at Lance, feeling tears forming in his eyes. “At least, I hope Lance isn’t… god, when did I become such a crybaby…”

He looked down at the floor, letting his hair hide his face from his friends so they were unable to see the tears dripping down his face. He felt like such an emotional wreck; he didn’t understand. He was never like this; he had trained himself not to be like this. Why was it suddenly so hard?

“Keith?” Lance began.

“I need to go for a walk.” He said simply. He shrugged away from Lance’s attempted touch before he walked out of the main room and down the hallway.

The halls in the Castle always seemed much bigger than they needed to be for Alteans or any alien race they had come across so far, but still too small for any of the Lions to fit inside. Normally he enjoyed the space, enjoyed having all this open area to explore on his own and not feel suffocated… but at the moment the emptiness of the hallway felt crushing. He felt alone, both figuratively and physically.

He walked onto the training deck again with a deep breath. Whenever he felt this heartbroken or emotional, the only thing he could ever think of doing was training. He knew it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do after being as sick as he had been the night before, but at the moment he had unresolved emotions that were making it harder and harder to keep his breathing calm.

“Start Training Level One.” He said quietly, a bot falling to the floor in front of him before running at him.

Keith grabbed his Marmora blade, holding it quickly in front of him and hoping that it would shift into the larger form of itself, but he had no such luck. He was stuck with the smaller one, but then again that had never been a problem before. He rushed towards the bot, ducking out of the way as it swung at him. He then spun his blade back so the blade was facing away from him, lashing out towards the bot. The luxite cracked against the bot’s torso, making a loud clank.

The robot slid backwards at the force, standing back up straight before once again rushing at Keith. Keith growled at the movement, spinning the knife forward again and aggressively slashing at the bot again and again, doing all he possibly could to damage the robotic man, who seemed unfazed by the attacks that the Galra ‘half-breed’ was doing.

Keith, knowing that he had beat this level of bot more than a handful of times, was becoming more and more frustrated with himself. Why?! Why was everything suddenly so hard?! He could do this; he knew he could! Why wasn’t it working?!

He let out a howl of anger, throwing his knife. It bounced off the metal bot but it caused enough of a distraction for Keith to tackle it down as he punched it across the face, putting as much force that he could muster into the single swing. He was almost shocked to see that the bot’s head turned almost completely around, the wires and other parts of the robot's neck springing out of the sides of the neck in many different directions. The bot laid there lifeless, aside from the occasional spark from its’ newly-exposed wires.

Keith sighed heavily, putting his head down with a frustrated grunt. He was so emotional right now; he didn’t understand. Was this just part of being in this stage of his life or was this something new that he didn’t understand? His stomach growled and he put his hand on it with a sigh. The constant growling from his stomach made him feel like he was hungry, but at the same time he had a feeling that if he ate he would just throw it all right back up.

Keith walked towards the door, running his fingers through his sweaty hair with a grunt as his stomach growled again. It was strange; sometimes the growls felt normal but other times it felt like his stomach was actually doing flips. He was frustrating was he really getting a stomach bug on top of all this other crap that he was dealing with? He sure as hell hoped not because at the rate that he was going he was going to fall apart before they even made it to their next stop.


	18. Broken Hearts

Lance was starting to get really worried about Keith; he was acting strange. Stranger than normal. He had known the hothead for just over a year; a year full of ups and downs and now a steep climb up in an entirely new direction. Lance loved Keith, more than he had loved anybody else in his life, but the fact that Keith was going through so much and still didn’t seem to trust him enough to let him help… it was frustrating. Was Lance doing something wrong? Did he say something to offend Keith or hurt his feelings? What had he messed up now? How could he fix this? Could he fix this? Was there a way to fix it or was their relationship doomed from the start?

Lance sat down in his chair, putting his head in his hands as all these thoughts began to flood his head.

“Lance, are you alright?” Allura asked, walking over with a frown. She clasped her hands in front of her, giving him a gentle smile. “What is the matter?”

“I’m just really worried about Keith.” He admitted. “There’s so much going on with him I’m not sure he can take any more of this.”

“I see… I wish I could be of more help to you… I simply don’t know how to help in this situation. If Zarkon ever went through something like this he never let it show, and the change wasn’t nearly as drastic… I wish we could help him more.”

“Me too…” Lance sighed. “I’m not sure he’d even accept our help, though.”

“That is very true as well…” She frowned. “Very well, then. I will do what I can to help you help him. What I understood from the Blade of Marmora is that many of the Galra mate for life… and if that is the case for you and Keith… then… I will do what I can.”

“For life?” He frowned nervously. Did that mean that he and Keith were going to be a ‘thing’ forever? He really liked Keith; he would even go so far as to say that he loved him, but at the same time it drove him crazy. He wasn’t sure if the little bit of not being able to stand him would cause problems in a bad way; it was worrying. All these questions were running through his head at what felt like a million miles an hour.

What should he do with this information? Should he go and ask Keith about it or should he keep it to himself? Should he try to keep going in this relationship or should he back out while he still had the chance? He was so scared. No, not scared… terrified. What would happen to Keith if he did back out of the relationship? Keith was in so much pain, so heartbroken, so scared. Would Keith be able to handle the stress of him breaking his heart like this?

He put his head back down in his hands with a frustrated growl. He didn’t want to hurt Keith but he was also only 19; he couldn’t handle responsibility like this. The longest relationship he had before this was one that lasted four months with a girl on Earth and now here he was living on a castle-shaped spaceship, dating a boy, and he had only been doing so for almost two weeks. It was all going much too fast; it felt like he was on a rollercoaster ride that he wasn’t able to get off of. 

Lance softly began to hum to himself and tap his foot to the tune, hoping that a good song would help distract him from what he was feeling. It was so frustrating not knowing what to do as his next step; in fact, it was almost sickening. His mind kept going back to Keith and what would happen if he left him. He needed advice, and while he would normally go to Shiro for this kind of thing he knew that Shiro would likely rip off his head if he found out that Lance was even considering breaking his best friend’s heart.

That really left only one option. Hunk.

He sucked in a breath, pushing down panic as he got to his feet and walked over to Hunk. “Hey… can you and I go talk for a moment? Alone?”

Hunk was clearly surprised for a moment but didn’t question it too much as he nodded.

The two then made their way out of the room, down the long hallway and into the Kitchen, where Lance quickly made his way to the island and sat down, putting his head on the cold surface.

“What’s wrong?” Hunk asked.

“Everything, Hunk.” Lance sighed.

“Well, that doesn’t narrow it down at all.” He chuckled, sitting down next to Lance as he began rubbing his back. “Do you mind clarifying?”

“It’s Keith…” He looked up at him. “Like… what do I do, man?” He messed up his hair, trying to jumble the thoughts in his head so they’d all fit together. “I thought he messed with my head when we were on Earth and now all of this is happening. It’s all going too fast! I’m only 19; I’m not ready to be in a serious relationship but in order to protect Keith I jumped headfirst into this to help him… Now there’s talk about him wanting to mate with me for life. Life, Hunk! Not just now and then or just a couple of nights in a row and then we break up and start being rivals again!”

Hunk frowned. “Woah. Lance, you need to slow down; you’re not making any sense… Now, let’s start at the beginning. Now, how do you feel?”

“Confused…”

“Obviously, but confused about what? Your feelings for Keith or the fact that he suddenly has a mating season and is all over you all the time?”

Lance raised his eyebrow. “For somebody who just said I’m not making any sense, you seem to be understanding just fine.” He mumbled. “But… both; I mean… I like him as a rival and while I thought he was cute all this time he also drives me crazy and I can’t stand him. He makes me so mad… I’m not sure how to feel about him on a normal day and this ‘mating season’ of his is only making it harder. He’s so goddamn cute when he sleeps, which makes my heart race but at the same time he’s made a nest of blankets in the center of my bed so I can hardly sleep, which just makes me furious! I need my beauty sleep; I don’t just wake up like this.”

“Lance… are you thinking about breaking up with Keith?”

“I… I’m considering it. I don’t know how to feel about a long-term relationship, let alone with Keith. I always imagined myself settling down with a hot babe on a beach on Earth… not a sexy alien in space with both of us constantly in danger of dying or losing him to a fight. Besides, man, I want like a million kids and Keith can’t give me that. I just… I just wish there was a way I could talk to my Ma; she’d know what to do… she always knows what to do in situations like these… What do you think I should do, Hunk?”

Hunk frowned. “Hm… while I don’t want to sound like a bad guy, I think you’re right. You should break up with Keith.”

Lance was startled and looked at Hunk with wide eyes. “You do?”

“Yeah, I do. It’s not fair to you or Keith to continue your relationship if you’re not sure how you feel about him… it’s best to tell him how you’re feeling now before he gets too attached to you or something big happens. This’ll give you both a chance to figure out how you feel about one another and will give Keith time to adjust to everything before he suddenly has to worry about a relationship.”

Lance frowned. Hunk was right. Of course Hunk was right. “You’re right… I’ll tell Keith next time I see him that we’re through… Hopefully he doesn’t take it too hard.”

 

Keith covered his mouth, trying not to feel sick. Why did his hearing have to be so good and his timing so bad? This couldn’t be happening. Not again; not now. Tears began to form in the corner of his eyes. Lance was leaving him? He knew he shouldn’t be surprised, but the fact that this was really happening was scary and sickening.

He was going to be alone again. The person he felt himself caring so much for was leaving him. He had scared Lance away because he had been too clingy. He hadn’t even realized he had been clingy and in the way. He was following his instincts and was getting in everybody's way. He was standing between Lance and his future goals. Lance had done nothing but been helpful to him since all of this began and all Keith was doing was being in the way.

Keith felt his bottom lip tremble and forced himself to back away from the door and make his way towards his room quietly. His tail wrapped around his stomach and waist as though trying to give him a comforting embrace, something he needed but now felt too awkward to ask for.

If Lance thought he was being clingy, did that mean that everybody else felt the same way? Was he in everybody’s way? Was he just a nuisance? A distraction?

He walked into his room, closing and locking the door behind him. He stood in the center of the room for a moment before he fell to his knees, his arms wrapped around himself as he loudly sobbed. This wasn’t what he wanted when he went searching for answers. He wanted to know who he was, what happened to his family, why he was abandoned, but now that he knew what he did he wished he had never been so damn determined. He wanted to go back to the cabin in Arizona, just as clueless as he had been before this entire adventure had begun.

Why do you always do this to yourself, Keith… you know you’re better off alone…


	19. Alpha's and Omegas

Keith kept himself locked up in his room until they landed on Olkarian, avoiding everybody around him like the plague. He knew that if he saw Lance he would break down crying and that was the last thing he wanted. Lance just wanted to break up; it wasn’t that big of a deal, but to him it felt as though it was the end of the world. He’d never felt this way about anybody, and the only other relationship he had been in before was an abusive one with a high-schooler when he was in middle school. He didn’t know how a real relationship was supposed to function, but apparently he was doing it extremely wrong if Lance wanted to break up with him.

He couldn’t just ignore Lance, though. They were part of a team; a team that needed to function, and even if he was hurting that shouldn’t matter. He needed to be able to push past the pain and be able to function. He couldn’t keep being a cry baby like this.

Keith opened the door, frowning when he saw Shiro standing outside it with a worried smile.

“I was beginning to think that I’d have to break your door down.” Shiro smiled. “Are you doing alright?”

“I’m… I’m fine.” He smiled softly, touching his stomach as it growled. Something it had been doing more and more as time passed. “Just hungry…”

“You’ve been locked in your room for almost eighteen hours; I’m not surprised. Come on, the Olkari have invited us for a feast.”

Keith laughed. “You know if we keep getting invited to ‘feasts’, we’re going to get fat.” He looked down at his feet. Even forcing a laugh was hard and only seemed to further prove that something was wrong.

“Keith… what’s going on?”

“Nothing, I just need to talk to Lance… do you know where he is?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, he’s putting his suit on.”

“Perfect.” He said, taking a step before he stopped. “I’ll be fine, Shiro, I promise.”

“I hope you’re right, Keith. I worry about you.”

Keith pressed his lips tightly together as he made his way towards where the suits were kept. If he stayed there any longer he’d start to cry and that was the last thing he needed to do. He had been crying since yesterday and at the rate he was going his tears were going to dehydrate him. “No need to.” He said quietly.

When he made it to the room, he frowned. Lance was there wearing just the black spandex part of the suit as he talked and laughed with Hunk and Pidge. He looked so happy, so… normal. Maybe… if Keith acted like breaking up was his idea it wouldn’t hurt as much?

“Lance…” Keith said and Lance looked up at him with a big smile.

“Keith! There you are; we were starting to worry.” Lance smiled as Hunk and Pidge walked out, having finished getting dressed.

“Lance… we need to talk.” Keith said, looking away. He knew if he looked into those big blue eyes he would be in trouble. Those eyes made his knees weak but right now all they would do is make him cry. “I, um… I think you and I should see other people…”

“W...what?” Lance sounded more confused than he expected him too. “Keith, what are you talking about?”

“I just mean… we’re both young, y’know? It’s not fair that I force you to stay with me through this. I can take care of myself, and chances are this will happen again next year and who know’s if we’re still going to be here in space by then or if we’re going to be back on Earth. I don’t want you to feel like you’re trapped and honestly, we’re moving way too fast… so yeah. I think we should see other people. Break up. Give use both a chance to get things figured out before we fall into something more serious than we’re wanting.” 

Lance seemed to relax but when Keith looked up, he saw what looked like hurt in his eyes. “I’m glad you think so. I was having the same thoughts.” Lance smiled.

Keith cleared his throat. “G-glad to know we’re on the same page… now I'm, um.. I'm going to get dressed then we should all head out to see the Olkari; I’m sure they’re waiting for us.”

“Yeah.” Lance smiled happily, pulling his armor on over his suit before jogging out, leaving Keith alone.

His breath began to come out in puffs as he put his head against the wall. He felt sick to his stomach, his heart feeling as though it was falling to pieces in his chest, and his head was throbbing with pain. He was miserable and heartbroken. The words he had said made sense, but right now he just felt as though he had made the biggest mistake he could have possibly made. Keith cared so much for Lance and now Lance thought that Keith didn’t care for him at all. 

He hiccuped softly, putting his hand on his mouth as tears formed and dripped down his face. This was too much. Way too much.

A large hand touched his shoulder before turning Keith around. Shiro was standing behind him, a look of confusion and worry on his face as he pulled Keith into a tight hug, wrapping his large arms around Keith’s smaller shoulders. One of Shiro’s hands touched the back of Keith’s head, rubbing his hair softly while the other one rubbed his back.

“Keith… why did you do that? You clearly still have feelings for him; why did you break up with him?”

“Because… h-he was going to break up with me. I-I felt like it wouldn’t hurt as much if I broke up with him… but it hurts… goddamn it, it hurts.”

Shiro hugged him close, letting Keith break down in his arms as he sobbed, large tears dripping down his face with his tail down between his legs. He hiccuped painfully, his body shaking as he looked and felt seconds away from throwing up again.

“You don’t have to go out there; you and I could stay in here having dinner together. We could see what kind of movies the Castle has; chances are it won’t make any sense but it’ll be fun to laugh at, and then we can-”

“No, Shiro… that’s okay. If we don’t show up then people will come looking for us.” Keith sucked in a breath. “It’s fine, really. Fresh air could do me some good.”

“Alright, but if you change your mind, we can come back in.”

“Thank you, Shiro. I’ll be alright… I just need some time.”

Shiro nodded, loosening his grip on Keith but not letting go in case his friend still needed the gentle embrace. “Alright, Keith. Take all the time you need. We’ll all be here when you’re ready.”

Keith sniffled slightly, putting his head on Shiro’s chest for a moment longer before he finally let out a heavy sigh and relaxed.

 

Less than an hour later they were all sitting in a large building in the Olkarian city with a decent amount of the population around the table as well. Everybody was laughing and having a good time except for Keith, who couldn’t focus on anything but the fact that Lance looked so happy while Keith felt so… broken. It was hard, and while most people didn’t seem to notice Shiro and Ryner could tell in an instant that Keith was in pain. Shiro was about to offer once again to go inside the ship with Keith when Ryner walked over to him and sat down.

“Keith, you look quite different from the last time I saw you.”

“Y-yeah… It’s, um… ‘mating season’ for the Galra… and apparently I’m Galra.”

“I know.” She smiled. “I’ve known from the moment I met you the first time. That you’re not only a Galra but an Omega as well. You’re quite brave, walking around with a scent like yours.”

“Scent like mine? What are you talking about?”

Her smile faded. “Scent. You know, smell? You’re a young Omega but of the age that you can be mated with; it’s stronger now that you’ve discovered your Galra side, on top of a few other things.” She chuckled.

“Mated with?” Keith asked with a frown.

“Yes… did nobody explain this to you?”

Keith shook his head slowly. “No… not really. When the transformation started I was in shock; everything just happened so fast I didn’t have time to ask questions or look for answers… I’m really freaking out about it now, though. I don’t understand anything that’s going on around me right now.”

Ryner got to her feet. “Follow me. With all this noise, it must be making the stress you’re feeling that much worse. Besides, some of what I have to tell you should not be said in public. It’s important that you learn this, though; preferably now rather than later.”

Keith nodded with a frown, getting up as well before following her out of the room.

Ryner lead Keith down a long hallway to a room secluded from the others. The room was rather large with two long white couches, a red rug in the middle, and paintings on the walls. It was much quieter than it had been down the hall but Keith could still hear the music thanks to his hyper-sensitive ears. Not to mention he felt so nervous and on edge about everything that all his senses were on edge as well.

Keith sat down slowly on one of the couches while Ryner sat on the other, facing him.

“Alright, so how long have you been in this mating season?”

“Um… a-almost two weeks?” He guessed softly, playing with the tip of his lion-like tail.

“I see; that makes sense.” She smiled. “So, let me explain. Galra fall into two categories that come into play primarily during seasons like this. Alphas are the dominant ones and often have one to three mates that they keep for life, though some of them have more. The Alphas are mean, aggressive and possessive of their Omegas, and Omegas that aren’t claimed yet. Then there are the Omegas that are not only always in danger from Galra Alphas but other species as well, because of their… main quality.”

Keith tensed up. “Main quality?”

She nodded. “Yes. You see, Keith, one of the main things that separate the two is that Omegas are able to carry young, and Galran Omegas are able to carry the young of any race that we know of.” 

“C-Carry young? Like, get pregnant?” He let out a nervous chuckle. “T-that’s impossible; there must be some kind of mistake. I’m a guy. I don’t have….” He gestured to his stomach. “I don’t have those kinds of parts.”

Her expression softened as she reached over and touched his knee. “Yes, you do. Your transformation has provided you with them; that is likely why you were in so much pain.” She said.

Keith was curious how she knew about the pain, but he assumed it was because of Pidge. The two had been talking to each other for a long time before the meal started.

“Keith, I have to tell you this before you find out on your own in another way. You are already with child.” She said.

“I’m… I’m what?” Keith scrambled to his feet, backing up. His thoughts spinning. “No. Nonononono, that’s impossible; I can’t be… not… no. I’m a guy; I’m a…” He began to feel dizzy and sick to his stomach again. “That’s not possible…”

She stood up. “Keith, please calm down. It’s not good for you or the child.”

“THERE’S NO CHILD!” He yelled, backing up more until he bumped against a wall with a grunt. “I… don’t… it’s not possible…”

“It’s more than possible; it’s a fact.” She touched his shoulders. “But you need to listen to me, Keith. Just because you are with child now doesn’t mean that you are safe. This might make some species that want to hurt you back off, but other species, if they smell it that won’t stop them from hurting you. They’ll kill the child to get you pregnant with theirs…” She looked him in the eyes, looking stern as he looked sick and ready to pass out. “You need to be careful… the child will be born in 20 to 28 weeks… can you make it that long?”

“No, I can’t! It’s not possible; I just…” He put his hand on his head as his knees gave out under him. He would have probably fell all the way to the ground if it weren’t for the fact that Ryner was there to catch him and support him.

“You need to eat.” She said, helping him sit back down. “If you can make it to the birth but can’t stand the child, bring them here and we will raise them… but until then you must stay calm. On rare occasions, if the baby dies in the womb it’ll kill you too. You need to take care of yourself…”

Keith was in shock; he could hardly hear what she was saying. But now everything made sense. Instead of morning sickness, he got sick at night; he was craving the strangest things like overcooked food goo, and the stomach growling… that wasn’t him feeling hungry; that was the small movements of the THING growing inside of him. “I… I….”

“I will get you some food. Take this time to gather your thoughts. Do you want me to get one of your friends? Tell them the situation?”

“No! No, don’t tell them. Please… I-I-I… I’ll tell them when the time’s right, but… not right now… I need to… I need to figure things out first.”

“Very well. I’ll be back soon…”


	20. A Deeper Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So while I was "gone" for a little while (meaning my internet freakin' died and I couldn't post anything XD) I wrote a good handful of chapters! So here is this chapter for you guys to read while I edit the next one! :D Thank you for all the comments it means so much to me to know you're all enjoying this story.

Shiro frowned when Ryner came back into the room without Keith. Shiro had overheard the small conversation they had out here about Keith not knowing much about what he was or what this ‘mating season’ was, so for her to come alone was worrying. Where was Keith? Was he okay?

He watched Ryner gather up a rather large plate of food before taking it back out of the room and back down the hall in the direction she had left. He scowled, and after finishing his juice and putting the cup on the table he decided to follow her out of the room. They walked down the hall past door after door until she finally turned and went into one. Shiro stopped outside the door and listened in.

 

Keith looked up when Ryner walked back in. He was curled up in a ball on the couch, feeling sick to his stomach and dizzy from all the stress and lack of food. Who would have guessed that not eating four 18 hours would cause so much trouble for him? Then again, if Ryner was right about him being…

He couldn’t even bring himself to even think the word, let alone say it out loud. 

“I brought you some food.” She said, holding the plate out to him. After a long, hesitant moment Keith took it with a frown.

“Thanks.” He said quietly, looking over everything. It smelled amazing, and while he wasn’t sure about half of the things on the plate he was sure that he was either going to regret eating this or be more than a little thankful to finally have something in his stomach. He couldn’t be sure about anything at this point, though. He grabbed the spork and began scooping some of the purple fluffy substance into his mouth, thankful to find that it tasted surprisingly like mashed potatoes with just a little too much pepper. It was familiar and lovely.

He hummed thankfully as he began to scoop the food faster into his mouth.

“Keith, I know that you do not want to talk to your friends about this; at least, not yet. However, there are things that I still need to explain to you.”

“I don’t want to talk about it…” Keith said after swallowing. “I mean, what are the chances that I’m actually…. You know. W-what makes you so certain?”

“I can sense it.” She said, making Keith frown. “In the same way the Olkari can sense the cosmic dust in the air, the plants, the planet, and everything around us; we can sense the life forming in intelligent life-forms as well, sooner than most species and often sooner than the one expecting even knows it. Though, if you’re still unsure… we can run some tests. Prove that you are, in fact, pregnant.”

His throat felt tight at the word, and while part of him felt sick the majority of him was still incredibly hungry. He forced himself to shovel more food into his mouth, his hand trembling slightly at the thoughts intruding in his head. “What kind of tests?” He asked between bites.

“Simple, non-invasive ones. Your friends won’t even have to know.” She assured him. “If, of course, that’s what you want.”

Keith slowed down on how fast he was eating and sighed softly. What was he going to do? What could he do?

If he was pregnant, it was undoubtedly Lance’s. He just broke up with Lance! There was no way he could just go up to his friend with this kind of news! Not to mention what the others would think about him now… He was expelled from the Garrison because he couldn’t listen to the rules. He was hated because he didn’t know how to express himself to the people he cared about, which in this case was Lance. He was part alien, but not just any alien; he was the alien species they had been fighting since the beginning of all of this. Then he started looking like the enemy and now he was supposed to be pregnant?! What the hell was he supposed to think?! What was he supposed to do…?

“Keith?”

Keith jumped and looked up, realizing that he had not only stopped eating altogether but that he had been staring off into space for who knew how long. “S-sorry, what?”

“Do you want to run some tests?”

Keith nodded after a moment. “Y-yeah. I do.” He said, putting his hand on his stomach as it ‘growled’ again. Though the more it happened, the less he really thought that was what they actually were.

“Alright, I’ll have our people prepare the medical hut so we can start it tonight. If you don’t want your friends to know what we’re doing, then you can simply tell them that we’re talking more about your mating season and trying to find a way to help you with your… ‘cravings’.”

“Is that possible?” Keith perked up. If he didn’t have to constantly feel horny like this, it would be incredibly helpful. 

“A little.” She chuckled. “There’s no pill or anything that I could give you to help get rid of your need to mate; however I can give you something to help you feel a little better about it without having to actually mate with anybody.”

Keith tilted his head softly. He didn’t understand, but anything was better than this. “I’ll come up with something.” He smiled nervously, then began eating again. “Thank you for all of this, Ryner… I might not act like it but I really do appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Now take a breather before you rejoin the party. However, I have to go out. After all, I’m the host and if people realize I’m gone they may come looking for me.”

“R-right. Okay, um… thanks again…” He gave her a timid smile, watching her walk out before he sighed and looked down at his plate of food. He was starting to feel sick again. Probably from eating so fast… or, you know… everything he had just been told. That could be part of why he didn’t feel so hot. 

 

Shiro peeked out from where he had hid in order to keep the fact that he had been eavesdropping hidden from Ryner. She was thankfully out of sight, but that didn’t change the fact that what he had heard made his own thoughts spin. What was he supposed to do with that kind of information? Keith was pregnant? That was impossible… wasn’t it? Though with everything that had been happening, nothing really seemed impossible anymore. He was so worried with how people would take this news, but he was more worried about how Keith himself was taking the news. He was only 19; he couldn’t afford to be a parent, especially not in space. It could be bad if the enemies found out about Keith’s pregnancy.

Pregnancy… it still sounded so… wrong. 

They were going to run tests to find out if that was the case. Shiro wanted to be there with him, but he suspected that Keith wouldn’t be able to handle having anybody know the truth. In fact, if Keith found out that Shiro had overheard their conversation, he would likely lash out or snap in another way. Shiro sucked in a deep breath before sighing softly and walking down the hallway towards the party.

Keith would come to him about this eventually; for now, though, all he could do was be there to support him and cover him if it came down to it.

Shiro walked down the hall and into the room where the party was being held, nearly bumping into Lance when he turned the corner.

“Woah; sorry, Shiro.” Lance said, a big, goofy smile on his face.

Normally Shiro would smile back, tell him it was fine, but after hearing what he heard…. He wasn’t sure if it was okay. “You and I need to talk.” Shiro said, taking Lance by his arm and pulling him to the edge of the party.

“What’s going on?” Lance asked with a frown.

Shiro sucked in a breath, trying to keep himself calm. He wanted to yell, scream, punch the wall and tell Lance that he was being an idiot for letting Keith go so easily, but at the same time he knew that getting mad would get him nowhere. He quickly calmed himself down, then looked at Lance with a caring breath.

“So, what’s going on with you and Keith?” He asked, deciding to play the ‘clueless’ card for this one. Hear his side of the story.

“Nothing… anymore.” Lance shrugged. His face was stern but there was a look of sadness and guilt in his eyes. “We broke up.”

“You did?” Shiro crossed his arms. “Why?”

“Well… I, um…” He sighed. “I got scared.” He admitted. “Keith broke up with me, though, so apparently he was getting scared too.”

Shiro relaxed even more. Fear. Of course fear was the cause for this. It always seemed to be the case with break-ups like this. He couldn’t be mad when a member of his team was scared. “Scared? Of what?”

“Well…” Lance rubbed his arm. “Allura told me that a lot of Galra mate for life. Did you know that? Life! Like wolves! They choose somebody they love and only ever have relations with that person for the rest of their lives! I-I mean… like, that’s not a bad thing, but I don’t know how to feel about that with Keith. I don’t even know how I feel about Keith and now all of a sudden I’m expected to be with him for the rest of my life?!” His voice cracked. “It freaked me out… a lot. So then I talked to Hunk and he agreed that I shouldn’t be pulling Keith around if I didn’t know how I felt and… I was going to break up with him this morning, but… I guess he beat me to it.”

Shiro frowned. He didn’t know that part. Mating for life? For him it probably wouldn’t be a big deal, especially if he really loved the person but for Lance, a player, that could be hard and indeed very scary. They were both really young. But if Ryner was right about the pregnancy… then it was about to get much scarier.

“Lance, do you love Keith?”

“L-love?” He blushed, then looked down. “I…. don’t know. I really don’t. I know I’ve never felt this way about anybody else but I’m just worried that this is an effect from Keith’s mating season. Like… something that affects me while he has all this other stuff going on. Like a scent or something… I’m worried, Shiro. Really worried. I’m worried breaking up was a mistake but I’m also worried that getting together will be an even bigger mistake. I don’t want to hurt him any more than I already have.”

Shiro grabbed Keith’s shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze. “Talk to Keith. That’s really the only thing that you can do right now…”

“How do I know he’ll even want to talk to me?”

“Trust me… I have a feeling he needs somebody, especially now.”


	21. Friends?

Keith was thankful that the bathrooms on Olkarion were a lot like those on Earth, and while it had been hard to find at first he felt better once he vomited and the nausea went away. Still though, he didn’t feel nearly as good as he wanted to, though he felt that it could have been chalked up to the stress he had been feeling. Keith put his hand slowly on his stomach as it moved slightly. He had been calling it a stomach growl, but the more it happened as well as what he had been told today made him guess that it wasn’t just a ‘growl’ anymore.

He lifted his armor slightly so he could see the shape of his figure under it. He still looked fit, but there was a little bit of a bulge just above his belt. It looked like, despite being sick all the time, he had been eating too much and was getting a bit chunky. He sighed softly, putting his hand on his stomach, giving it a soft push. There was something there for sure, a hard lump about the size of a half-dollar. Part of him wanted to keep pushing and investigating, but fear convinced him to pull his hand away from the bump.

Keith put his hands on the counter, trying to keep his breathing calm as his heart began to race. He had to calm down. There was still a chance that Ryner was wrong. A very small chance, but a chance all the same. A chance he needed to take. He couldn’t just let himself fall apart no matter what happened. If he was… pregnant… then he would have to figure things out. He would have to push past the fear and pain and figure out how to deal with it.

There was a knock on the door, making Keith jump violently.

“Keith, you in there?” Lance said, making Keith felt sick again in an instant. “Lemme in; we need to talk.”

Keith opened his mouth to reply but quickly rushed to the toilet as he threw up yet again, coughing and gagging. Lance, seeming to be able to hear what was going on, quickly opened the door and rushed in. Lance was at Keith’s side in a second, pulling his black hair back out of his face with one hand while the other one rubbed Keith’s back.

“Oh man, are you okay?” Lance asked carefully when the waves of vomiting stopped.

“I”m… okay. Stop touching me.” Keith shrugged Lance off as quickly as he could muster the strength.

Keith wasn’t mad at Lance; in fact, he was thankful to have him at his side, but at the same time having Lance touching him set all of him on edge. He missed the touch more than he wanted to admit. It had only been a few hours but that had already been too long. Keith looked up at Lance as he moved his hands away.

“I’m alright… I just need a little while… must have eaten too much.”

“Really? I haven’t seen you at all this entire party.” He smiled. “What, did you steal some food and fill up on it when nobody was looking?”

“Hey, I don’t judge you.” Keith said, thankful to feel a smile form on his own face.

Lance helped Keith to his feet and over to the sink before helping the half-Galra get up to the counter. Lance ran cold water over his hands before running his damp hands across Keith’s hot forehead. Lance then helped Keith out of the restricting chest plate.

“How did you find me?” Keith asked.

“Shiro pointed me in the direction he saw you leave. Are you alright?” Lance asked, wetting his hand again and running them over Keith’s face again.

“Yeah… I will be.”

Lance frowned. “Keith… you and I should talk.”

“About what?”

“About us. The future or past… it doesn’t matter but we need to talk about it all the same. The fact of the matter is, you said you loved me.”

Keith gulped softly. “If I remember right, you said it first… So what changed?”

“What do you mean?”

“I heard you and Hunk talking. I know you’re scared and that you don’t know how to feel about me… about all of this…” Keith’s ears went down and Lance rubbed up and down his back.

“You… heard all of that?”

“Yeah. I did… all of it… I saw you guys walk in and I thought something was wrong, so I went to see if you were okay… turns out you weren’t…”

“Oh man, Keith… you weren’t supposed to- man, I didn’t- I wasn’t going to.”

“You weren’t going to break up with me?”

“I… I don’t know… If you heard our conversation then you know that I’m worried about you, about us. I care for you. I really, really care for you but… I wasn’t- I mean, I’m not… sure if I’ll care for you this way for the rest of my life…”

“I… understand.” Keith rubbed his nose as he felt tears beginning to form. No. He couldn't’ cry in front of Lance! He couldn’t do this! If he started to become an over-emotional mess....

Emotions. He should tell Lance. If he was pregnant, he needed to know. Out of all of them, Lance deserved to know.

“Lance, I-”

“Keith, I’m sorry.” Lance spoke up quickly. “I’m sorry I hurt you; I never wanted that. I really care for you, more than I’ve cared for somebody before. But… I’m just worried that I don’t care for you in the way that you’ll need me to… so can we try to be friends? Not just lovers or rivals like we have been, but friends. Get to know each other, hang out together… and if something forms from that then we go from there. Take it a little slow, not just jump headfirst into the situation like we did before.”

Keith thought for a moment. Lance wanted to be friends? Could he handle being friends? What would they do if he was pregnant? What would happen to their ‘friendship’ then?

Keith looked up at Lance, giving him a smile. “Sure, Lance. I’d like that.”

“Good. Now come on, let’s get back to the party before people begin to worry about you even more.”

“Y-yeah, okay.” Keith smiled, grabbing the armor chest plate and putting it back on. “Think they have any more of that stuff that tastes like mashed potatoes?” He asked, getting off the counter.

“How can you just up and do that?” Lance laughed, the two walking them out of the bathroom. “One minute you’re throwing up and the next minute you’re eating again.”

Keith let out a worried chuckle. “Your guess is as good as mine.” He lied. Maybe he wouldn’t say anything to Lance until he knew for sure if he were pregnant or not.


	22. Is that a Heartbeat?

Keith was thankfully able to sneak away that night without anybody on the ship seeing him and he made his way towards the clinic that he and Ryner had discussed earlier. She was meeting him outside with another Olkari, another female. This one was younger than Ryner.

She had a round face with violet-purple eyes and a long ponytail. She was wearing a white nurse's gown and a kind smile. She looked like she had a million questions but she was either too shy to ask them or she was just doing all she could to keep her mouth shut about the situation.

“Keith, this is Krisella.” Ryner said. “She will be running the tests on you today. She is sworn to secrecy and will not say anything to anybody unless you ask her to.”

“I-i-it’s nice to meet you.” She smiled, doing a slight wave. “Since you and your companions rescued us I have been doing all the studies I could on the human race, but not much is known so I was wondering if I could ask you some-”

“Krisella.” Ryner scowled and Krisella seemed to blush.

“R-right! Sorry! C-come on, Keith. Follow me, we’re going to have you change into something more comfortable… I-I’m going to give you a full check-up as well. Pidge explained that your transformation was extremely painful and I’m just going to make sure that nothing serious happened to you. Well… really serious. L-life-threatening, I mean.” 

Keith followed Krisella and Ryner into the clinic and down a hall to a secluded room. Once again, Keith was reminded of Earth. Between the smells, sights, and sounds of everything around him, it almost felt as though he was back on Earth in a normal hospital. He had been in one enough times that he should know plenty well what it was like.

Once in the room Krisella handed him a pair of white shorts and a small band that Keith assumed was for his hair.

“Strip down and put these on, then tie your hair back with this.” She explained. “When you’re ready, go through those doors and we’ll begin…. Do you have any questions?”

“Yeah… just one… will this hurt?”

“Hurt? Oh! No, of course not! It’s a simple test to see if you are with child, and if you are it’s another small test to see how far along you are… the other tests might require some more detailed things but nothing painful. I won’t even have to draw any blood. I promise.” She smiled.

Keith nodded nervously. There went one fear. He hated needles. “Thanks… um, I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

“Take your time, Keith. We understand that you’re nervous about all of this. It is only natural.” Ryner smiled, the two girls leaving the room and closing the door behind them.

Once Keith was alone he sucked in a fearful breath. This was actually happening. He couldn’t believe it. Part of him was tempted to just leave the room and sneak his way back to the ship, but the rest of him knew that without answers he would just regret it later. He pulled his shirt off and put it on a counter nearby before working on his pants and boxers.   
The moment he was stripped of his clothes his tail wrapped around his stomach in the way it did when Keith began to feel really nervous, but he paid it no mind and pulled the white pair of boxers on.

He then pulled his hair into a low ponytail, something he hadn’t done in a while. He missed having his hair out of his face but he also knew that on Earth, having his hair pulled back caused a lot of people to tease him. Hopefully despite the similarities between this planet and home, there wouldn’t be anybody picking on him here.

Keith sucked in a breath and then looked in the mirror against the wall. Despite the purple fur covering his body the scar on his right shoulder was clear thanks to a bald spot.   
There were also a few less drastic scars on his chest and stomach. With his hair pulled back it gave his ears more space to move without the hair tickling them, though the bangs still covered his face. His lion-like tail slowly unwrapped from around his stomach as he relaxed, and after gathering up his courage he walked out of the room.

The room had an examination bed in the center with machines around it and a large screen against the wall, as well as one on the ceiling. Now it was really beginning to feel like he was being abducted by aliens and was about to be probed.

“Take a seat on the bed, Keith. If you feel uncomfortable at all let us know and we’ll stop.” Ryner promised.

Keith nodded slowly, sitting down on the bed and watching them both carefully as they began to put electrodes on his chest, stomach, and one on the back of his neck. It was strange, but not painful; so far they had kept their promise.

“Okay, those are in place so now you can lay down.” Krisella said, walking over to a computer and turning it on, typing on the screen quickly.

Keith once again did as he was told, looking over at the screen as a heartbeat could be heard. At first he thought it could be his, but then he realized the beating was faster than his and it was going at a different time than his was.

“W… what is that? Is that mine?”

“No, Keith. That’s your child’s heartbeat..” Ryner said and Keith felt dizzy. Now he understood why they had him lay down.

“A-are you serious?”

“Yes, Keith. You are, in fact, pregnant.” Krisella said “From the signs I’m getting from this, you are almost two weeks along. Not very far, but for a Galra infant… that’s already a good chunk of the way.”

“Really? O-oh, right… 20 weeks, right?”

“Yes, give or take a few. So… about now, you have almost 18 weeks left.” Ryner touched his shoulder. “Is there somebody you want me to call?”

“Um… n-no. No, that’s alright.” He said, looking at his hands. “Can we just, um… continue the exam? I want to get this done as soon as we can so I can go back to the ship… I have a lot of thinking I need to do.”

“We can stop here if it’s too much.” Krisella frowned.

“N-no point, right? We might as well just do this all at once…”

Krisella and Ryner looked at each other but said nothing as Krisella grabbed what appeared to be a small electronic tablet and waved it over him.

“Alright, your blood pressure is a little high but that can be blamed on stress. Your bone structure is lighter than we normally see in the Galra and you seem to be a little underweight, though I don’t know much about humans, as I mentioned before, so this could be normal for you… it’s not an unhealthy weight but with you being pregnant you might want to consider eating more.”

“Um… right… how will I… give birth? I mean… is there something special I need to do?”

“Special?” Ryner asked asked Krisella waved the tablet lower. “No, your transformation should have given you the option to give birth…” She frowned. “But… I don’t see it here… That could be a problem…”

“W-what will we do?”

“There is only one thing we can do: hope it forms… if not, we’ll simply have to extract the child another way when the time comes…” Ryner said nervously.

“Extract… you make it sound so violent.” Keith chuckled. “W=where we come from, we call it a C-section.”

“Ah, yes; that is a much more enjoyable term, whatever it means.” Krisella said. “Other than that everything looks fine... If you want to though I can send this information to the crew on the Castle of Lions and have them compare this to before your transformed, so you can know for sure.”

“No.” Keith sat up, pulling off the electrodes. “Nobody needs to know… not yet. I’ll tell them soon… I promise, but… I just need to figure out how…”

“Understandable. Do you want me to walk you to the Castle?” Offered Ryner.

“No, no… I need to take a walk and clear my head… I’m going to get dressed. T-thanks for everything…” He pulled off the last electrode before walking into the room where his clothes were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Krisella is an Original Character of mine :3 Though I kinda based her on my amazing Girlfriend who has been the biggest help for me and this story. Without her helping me edit I'm not even sure the story would have made it this long nor been this well written!


	23. Close Call

Keith sighed heavily as he walked along, his arms crossed over his chest. He knew that he had been warned not to wander around too much by the Blade of Marmora and even Ryner, but he didn’t care. Not right now. He was too stressed to care. The fresh air was nice on top of all of that as well.

His ear twitched at the sound of somebody walking around behind him and he sighed. “I’m fine, Ryner…” He said, but upon getting no reply from the person that was quickly approaching behind him he stopped and went to turn around.

Before he could completely turn around, though, a large arm wrapped around his arms and a hand covered his mouth. Frightened, Keith instantly began to struggle and tried to break free from the grip, but he could feel himself being dragged away. The person was strong, really strong, and on top of that he had an overwhelming scent of sulfur that was making Keith feel dizzy and sick to his stomach.

“An Omega; it’s not often you find one wandering around, especially not a Galran Omega… tell me, pup, where is your Alpha?”

Keith let out a muffled insult, grabbing the blade tucked in the back of his belt he slashed at his attacker’s arm, cutting him across the forearm. This gave Keith enough leverage to stomp on his attackers toes, grabbed the arm covering his mouth and throwing his attacker over his shoulder.

Keith’s ears were down, the tip of his tail puffed up in fear and anger.

The person that landed in front of him was not from Olkari, but it also clearly wasn’t Galran. His skin was the color of coal and seemed to be leathery like an alligator’s, with ridged bumps on the top of his bald head that vanished under his tight red and black suit. He was easily 6 inches taller than Keith and seemed a lot more physically fit than Keith did, though that didn’t mean that Keith was going to go down without a fight.

“How do you know I’m an Omega?” Keith growled. 

“Oh please, I could smell you from the other side of the planet. You’re lucky the Olkari are a peaceful race with no need to mate with an Omega. They simply don’t need the numbers nor are they as hungry as others. Unless, of course, it wasn’t luck and you’re just that dumb.” He said, getting to his feet.

He had round but sharp nails coming out of the tips of his fingers; all of his teeth were sharp like a shark’s and he also seemed to have multiple rows of them as well.

“No, I’m just that confident that people wouldn’t mess with me.” Keith frowned, cursing himself for not bringing some type of communicator with him in case something like this happened. Then again he shouldn’t have been too surprised; this stuff always seemed to happen to him.

“Why would you think that, Pup?” He chuckled, rushing at Keith at speeds that shouldn’t have been possible for his stature.

Keith gasped in surprise, jumping out of the way but not before his sharp nails ripped Keith’s jacket and cut the flesh under it. Keith didn’t get a chance to react to the pain before the attacker grabbed Keith’s tail, using it to pull Keith close enough to kick his legs out from under him and knock Keith to the ground.

The attacker tried to pin Keith down while he was dazed, but was stopped when Keith kicked him in the stomach as hard as he could, knocking him off again. Keith was tired already; he felt sick, the ‘growling’ in his stomach seeming to react to the situation which only made him feel dizzy and slower. This was bad. He couldn’t be slow, not in this fight.

Keith tried to get back up, hearing the attacker rushing at him again but his body was too weak. He grabbed his blade, ready to stab the guy when he got too close. Keith didn’t get the chance; there was a sudden and ground-shaking THUMP above him as Red landed, her head positioned protectively over Keith. 

-Cover your ears.- She told him, and Keith didn’t hesitate doing as he was told.

No matter how hard he covered his ears, nothing could block out the roar she made towards the mysterious man, causing him to scramble back in fear. 

-YOU WANT HIS ALPHA?! HERE I AM! BRING IT, BITCH!- She yelled, and Keith only wished that the man who had tried to hard to hurt him could hear her words. She sounded like a mother bear protecting her young.

The man, smart enough to realize that he was no match for a Voltron Lion, quickly retreated and vanished into the darkness. 

-Keith, what are you doing out here?!- Red said, watching Keith get up before she put her head on the ground. -Did you not understand that you are in constant danger because of what you are?! You must be more careful!-

“N-no… I… I thought I understood… guess I was wrong…” Keith put the blade back in his belt before touching the wound on his arm.

They were beginning to gather a crowd, likely drawn out by all the noise, a mix between curiosity and fear on all of their faces.

-...Come, your fellow paladins are worried about you. Let us get you back to the Castle.-

Keith, deciding not to argue with the lion who had just saved his life, climbed inside without a second of hesitation and sat in his chair with a heavy breath. “Sorry for the scare…” He said softly. 

-You should be; Coal was worried about you.- She said, but Keith guessed that she was more worried about him than the Black Lion was.

“I’ll make sure to say sorry…” Keith said, putting his head in his hand as his eyes began to close.

When did he get so tired? No, tired didn’t even cover it… he was exhausted.

 

Keith wasn’t sure how long he slept, though it couldn’t have been more than a few moments before Shiro woke him up. He was still in Red, in the chair. His eyes were heavy, his thoughts were jumbled, and his arm was already stiff.

“Keith; hey, you okay?”

Keith moaned in frustration as Shiro helped him to his feet. He didn’t want to move. He just wanted to sleep. He was so tired…

“I’m fine, Shiro.”

“You’re bleeding.” Shiro noted. “What happened?

“I was attacked in the plaza; Red took care of it…”

Shiro helped Keith walk out of Red and into the hangar, where all of their friends were waiting for him.

“When did you leave?!” Pidge said. “None of us even realized you were gone!”

“Doesn’t matter; I'm fine.”

“You’re bleeding; in my book, that’s not fine!” Piped up Hunk.

“Hunk is right; we should get you into a healing pod. Then you can explain to all of us what you were doing out there at this time of night.” Allura said.

The idea of his arm being healed and not throbbing anymore was one he enjoyed, and he almost agreed to it until his thoughts turned to the baby. He wasn’t sure how he felt about being pregnant, but if he got into the Pod and it convinced his body the baby was ‘unnatural’ he wouldn’t have a chance to understand his feelings about it all. The Healing   
Pod could easily kill the baby. He couldn’t take that chance.

“No!” Keith pushed Shiro away and likely would have fallen down if Red hadn’t move her nose forward to steady him. “I-I’m fine; there’s no point in using up the Crystal’s energy for a scratch. I’m fine… just… really tired… I just want to go to sleep.”

“But Keith-” Coran began, but Shiro spoke up.

“That’s alright.” Shiro said. “I’ll walk you to your room and give you some first aid, and then you can sleep… but in the morning you should tell us what happened, okay? Secrets aren’t a good thing to have when you’re part of a team… It can only cause problems in the future.”

Keith hesitated. Tell them what happened? Everything or just the attack? He would only have a few hours to decide but Shiro was right; keeping secrets weren’t something he could afford to do. He knew that now. The fact that he was pregnant and being attacked because he was an Omega… it only made things more complicated; not to mention the Galra still had a bounty on Voltron’s head. They had so many things to worry about… and now a baby?

Keith let Shiro help him to his bedroom. He stripped off his jacket and shirt, dropping them on the ground as he whimpered slightly. There were three shallow but long wounds across his upper arm. He frowned, touching them softly. It was weird to the touch and almost felt slimy, but he didn’t question it too much. He was too dizzy to care.

“So where did you go?” Shiro asked, sitting on the bed with a first aid kit between them. He opened the box slowly, pulling out an ointment and rubbing it on the cuts slowly.

“Ryner wanted to meet with me…” He said softly. “We had to talk about things…”

Shiro was quiet for a long moment before he put his hand on Keith’s back. “Keith, I can’t keep quiet about this… I overheard your conversation earlier.”

Keith felt his blood run cold as he looked up at Shiro, his heart racing. “Y-you did?”

“Yeah… Keith… are you pregnant? If you are, we’re going to need to make preparations…”

Keith really didn’t like the sound of that. “Preparations?”

“Yeah, you know… We’d have to tell the others, of course; make sure the Castle is safe, and make sure that the medical room is prepared for you when the time comes.”

Keith was beginning to feel dizzy from all the stress. Now that was something he really didn’t like the sound of. Being the center of attention for even longer? Everybody having to do something to accommodate something that he should be able to do by himself? It was too much, too stressful… he couldn’t take it.

“No, I’m not.” Keith said softly. He hated lying to anybody, especially Shiro, but with everything happening… They had bigger things to worry about. “My body’s just not fully transformed yet so I’m feeling sick because of that. I should be fine by the end of the week.”

Shiro looked painfully relieved at this. “Good; that’s good.” He let out a worried chuckle, beginning to bandage his arm. “The last thing we need right now is a baby on the ship… not to mention I really don’t think you’re ready for kids. You don’t have enough experience.”

“Right… that…”


	24. Care Package

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of sin in this chapter; decided Keith needs a little bit of happiness after all the problems going on in his life.

Two days later they were ready to leave Olkari. As much as they wanted to stay they had been unsuccessful in finding and capturing the person who attacked Keith, and they needed to check on other friends across the galaxy. Hunk was itching to go somewhere else and was clearly hopeful to see Shay, but Keith as well as Pidge and Matt wanted to stay. Keith still had so many questions to ask, and with nobody on the ship able to answer them he was scared he would never know the truth.

Krisella walked over to Keith as they were saying goodbye with a box in her arms.

“Ryner and I came up with these for you, to help you with everything until we see you again.” She explained. “Blankets, a book we found on Galra pregnancies, some snacks for the road, and…” She seemed to blush. “S-something else Ryner put in that should help you deal with your sexual urges. There’s an instruction manual inside as well.” She handed him the box and Keith smiled at her.

“Thank you, Krisella…”

“A-anytime… did you tell anybody yet?”

“No… i-in fact, the one person who I could have told… I lied to. I told him I wasn’t… ‘with child’, as you put it…”

She looked shocked. “But what will you do when they discover the truth? You cannot keep this a secret forever.”

“I-I don’t know… honestly, I’m scared… I need to figure out everything on my end first before I drag everybody else in… besides… Ryner already offered to take it if I didn’t want it…”

“I see… well, then…” She dug into her pocket and handed him what looked like a smart phone. “This will allow you to contact me at any time. Day or night…. If you have any questions I will do what I can to help… but you should tell your friends as soon as you feel ready. There’s only so much I can do from here…”

Keith looked at it for a moment before he nodded. “Thank you, Krisella… I owe you one.”

“Think nothing of it. I wish to be your friend and no good friendship is built on ‘owing’ one another something.” She smiled. “Though I will hope that one day you’ll be able to answer some of my questions.”

Keith gave her a smile. “Next time we’re here, I will. I promise.”

“Good! I will hold you to that promise!”

Keith looked at his friends, who were ready to leave and waiting on him.

“Keith, come on!” Hunk said impatiently.

“Right, coming!” He called, then looked at Krisella one more time. “Thank you again.” He said, adjusting the box before walking towards the ship.

“Sooo~” Hunk began as soon as they were inside as he tried to peek into the box, which Keith quickly covered with a blush. “Who was that? Your new girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend? Hunk, I hate to tell you this man, but I'm gay.” Keith said and Hunk blushed.

“Everything I have ever thought before this moment has been a lie.” He said dramatically. “But seriously, who is she?”

“Her name is Krisella; she’s a friend of mine. We met last night during my walk. She works at a hospital in the village.”

“So why did she give you a present?” Pidge asked, not sounding jealous but rather very curious.

“Oh, it’s to help with whatever pain is left over from my transformation.” He partially lied. “She wanted to know more about what happened and we ended up talking about it for a long time.”

“She seems very kind.” Allura smiled as they walked into the main room and started up the Castle. “We will have to do something for her when we return.”

“Indeed.”

“Ooh! Coran, the space mall isn’t too far from here; can we make a stop?” Lance asked happily.

“I suppose so, but why?”

“I want to see if they have another cow; Kaltenecker is getting lonely.”

“We’re not getting another cow.” Shiro sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “In fact, we should probably return the cow we have.”

Keith frowned after a moment. For a second it sounded like a good idea until he thought back on what Ryner and Krisella had said about his transformation not being complete. Would he be expected to ‘feed’ the baby? Would it work like a normal baby on Earth? Would it need milk? What if he couldn’t do that?! He didn’t have boobs!

“No.” Keith said quickly and maybe a little too loud. “I-I mean, I’ve kinda grown attached to him.” He said with a blush. “I-I think he’s cute.” 

“Yeah, and it’s not like he gets in the way or anything.” Matt pointed out, putting his hand on Shiro’s shoulder. “Besides, I don’t know about you but it’s nice to have something from Earth here on the ship. Just to remind us of home…”

Shiro sighed, seeming to realize that he was outnumbered as he gave up. “I guess you have a point on that one… fine. The cow can stay.”

“I kinda wanna see what the ‘Earth’ store has too.” Keith said, his arms crossed nervously. Maybe they had stuff that he could use in the future?

“Then the Space Mall it is!” Allura chuckled happily.

“Yes, but let us keep our disguises on this time, shall we?” Coran suggested and Hunk chuckled.

“Yeah, last thing we need is the Mall Security guard chasing us again.”

“Aww, but it was fun.” Lance pointed out and Keith had to hide a smile. Looking back on it, yeah; it was fun. Back then it was a little scary, but now it was something he could laugh at. There were a lot of moments that he could look back on like that one. Though there were also a few that still made Keith mad, like Sendak blowing up the Crystal and nearly killing Lance. That was something he could likely never let go.

“Will you be joining us this time, Allura?” Pidge asked and Allura smiled.

“I’m hoping so. With less Galra to worry about I should be able to freely go there, though like the rest of you I will also need a disguise.”

The Castle took off into the air and the discussion about the ‘Space Mall’ continued, giving Keith the time and space he needed to sneak off and head towards his room. He wanted to see what was in the box, but he was more than a little concerned about what could be inside. From what he was told he could only guess that there were things that would give away his secret and he couldn’t afford that to come out yet.

Once he got to his bedroom he closed the door and locked it behind him, placing the box on the bed and opening it. He was surprised to see that it looked a lot like a ‘Care Package’, something some of the kids had gotten at the Garrison and even a few people in the Orphanage. They got them from homes that didn’t keep them but still cared about them. Keith had never gotten one before, and seeing it was enough to make him smile.

The first thing he noticed in the box were two soft and fluffy blankets; one of them was different shades of green in a checker pattern, while the other one seemed to have a Galaxy theme to it with a large crescent moon in the center of it. They were both beautiful, and when he pulled them out of the box his first instinct was to press it against his face and enjoy the softness for himself. They were too small for him to use, but he guessed that was kind of the point. They would be for the baby if and when it came.

Once he was done cuddling against the soft fabric he put them down on the bed and looked into the box again. There was a bottle of purple juice, a wrapped-up bar that appeared to be candy, and a box of what he could only assume was the alien version of crackers. His first instinct was to rip it open and eat it all, but he pushed it down and continued looking. The next thing that caught his attention was a book that had alien writing on the front. He recognized the writing as Galran and knew that the only way he would be able to read the book would be to translate it page by page, then figure it out from there.

That didn’t stop him from picking it up and flipping through the pages, though. There were pictures of Galra everywhere, and one that really caught his attention was a picture of a baby Galra. They seemed to be about the same size as a human newborn but they were covered in fluffy fur, and this specific one had blue fur and large ears. It was wrapped up in a white blanket and was sucking on its’ fist. Admittedly, it was adorable and made Keith smile. He doubted his baby would look like that, but it would be related to Lance so there was no doubt that the baby was going to be cute one way or another.

Keith reached to put the book back in the box when he froze, his face heating up as he saw the final object in the box. Despite being billions of miles away from Earth dildos all seemed to look kind of the same, which is how he knew that is what he was looking at. Nervously he looked around, as though double-checking to make sure nobody was watching as he pulled it out of the box. There was also a smaller book under it that he pulled out.

The dildo was bright purple and was surprisingly thick and much larger than his actual member; he could only assume that was because it was inspired by a Galra cock but that was only a guess. It had bumps on the shaft and waves at the head. The hilt of the dildo was flared out and seemed harder than the rest of it, with a line all the way around it, suggesting that there was more to this dildo than what he could see at first glance. He studied it a little more, running his fingers experimentally over it before opening the book that had been written in crudely translated English.

“Push button on bottom.” Read the first step.

He examined the bottom of the hilt and found the button mentioned; it was small but easy to find. He pushed it, jumping violently when three little slits opened on the hard hilt with pieces of leather now hanging out. He gave one of the pieces of leather an experimental tug and was surprised to find it came out quite a fair distance before retracting back inside. He wasn’t sure what it was for but already he found himself excited by it.

“Strip off clothing, then provide toy with generous amounts of lubricant.”

Keith gulped in excitement, putting the toy down on the bed. He didn’t know anything about this toy but that wasn’t going to stop him. He was in too much of a mood to even care. They had given him this thing for this very reason so why not take advantage of it while he could? He climbed off of his bed, stripping himself of all his clothes before excitedly returning to the bed. Keith dug between his wall and the bed, grabbing a bottle of lube he kept on hand and pouring a good amount onto the head of the dildo, rubbing it around until it was completely covered.

“Pull out the straps, clipping one around each thigh and the third around the base of the user's own cock. The third one is not necessary but recommended for full experience of pleasure.” 

Keith grabbed the first strap out of the hilt, angling himself above the dildo before clicking the strap in place around his right thigh before repeating the process over his left. He hesitated with the third one, but clipped it around the base of his own cock. The leather tightened as it tried to go back into the hilt, but it was stopped by Keith’s body. The head of the dildo against his entrance, though; without any force behind it there was no way it was going to go in on its’ own.

“Stretch self out before use to prevent damage to one’s self.”

Keith nibbled his lip, pouring more of the lube onto the tips of his fingers. He used one hand to push the dildo out of the way while the lubed-up hand rubbed around his entrance and he effortlessly slipped two fingers in, a purr pushing through his throat. It felt wrong, doing himself like this, but at the same time he knew it was his only option right now. He thrust his fingers in and out, wiggling and spreading his fingers as he did the best he could to stretch himself out. Though he suspected that no matter what he did, it would be a really tight fit into him. He panted, biting his lip as he slipped a third finger into him and after a few moments of continuing his thrusts he got his fourth finger in. After a few more moments though, that was all he could force inside himself and he wouldn’t be able to push in another finger. He would have to work with what he had now.

“Once fully stretched push in the toy to the hilt.”

He frowned, he was curious what the button would do if he pressed it again but he didn’t question it too much. His mind was going a million miles an hour and all he wanted was pleasure. He grabbed the hilt and began to push it against the entrance. It would be a tight fit thanks to the fact that the head was easily the size of his fist and it was just a little shorter than his forearm. That didn’t mean anything to him, though; right now he knew pleasure awaited and that was all he cared about.

The head slipped in, causing Keith to gasp as he felt himself be suddenly stretched out further than he had done himself. His mind seemed to go fuzzy instantly and there was still so much more pleasure he would be able to enjoy once he got it in even further. Panting, Keith wiggled his hips, his tail wrapping around his waist. He gave himself a moment to adjust to it before ever so slowly lowering himself down on it until it was all the way in, filling himself to the point where his mind went blank. It felt so good.

Keith laid down slightly, his chest against the bed as he continued to sway his hips. He reached down and touched his stomach. It felt so good but it was also worrying. Would this hurt the baby? Should he stop here?

He hazily picked up the book, reading the last two lines.

“This won’t hurt the baby so you’re free to do this as much and as often as you want! Now, if you want real pleasure push the button on the bottom of the hilt again.”

Keith was thankful they had thought about that and took that into consideration, but now he was curious what would happen if he pushed the button again. Deciding there was only one real way to find out, he slid his hand down between his thighs and pressed the small button. The effect was instant.

The leather around his cock tightened and both the toy and leather began to vibrate. The pleasure was so intense he nearly screamed. His eyes widened and rolled back, his toes dug into the sheets of his bed and he began to purr loudly. He covered his mouth with one hand as he sat up on his knees and he began to thrust himself into the leather ring. He was so full; he thought he was going to lose his mind. But still, despite how good this all felt, there was still something missing. He wanted to cling to somebody, ride out his pleasure, bite the collarbone of his lover… but most of all he wanted to scream out a name.

Lance.

He wanted to scream out to Lance, tell him to do him harder, to fill him up. But he was alone, and all he could do was rub himself on the sheet, covering his mouth as pleasured tears pricked the corner of his eyes and drool dripped down his chin. He groaned in pleasure, tightly closing his eyes with a small, breathless whimper as he came. There was no break in the pleasure; he had no time to recover, and instead of coming off his high the pleasure seemed to become impossibly higher. He was actually losing his mind. He was losing his mind because of an alien sex toy!

Desperate to hold onto something he grabbed his pillow, clinging to it as he rubbed his nipples against the fabric.

Lance… He thought to himself, burying his face into the pillow as he purred and moaned out, doing all he could to keep his voice down.

“Lance…” This time he said it out loud, though his voice hardly came out. “M-more… h-harder. Please, I-I need to...ah… Lance, please…” He felt so bad. It felt so good, yet he was calling out the name of somebody he was not only lying to, but somebody he had just promised to be friends with. Just friends. Keith wanted more than that! He wanted this! He wanted this and more! He wanted Lance to be the one giving him all this pleasure!

He came again, letting out a silent scream into the pillow.

“Lance!”


	25. Space Mall

To say Keith was dazed when they made it to the Space Mall three hours later was an understatement. He had managed to take a short nap but he felt as though he was still on his high from the toy. His face was flushed, his stomach still feeling surprisingly full, and he felt a little like he was floating on clouds.

Keith tied his hair back in a ponytail as he looked over his friends. Unlike the others he didn’t have to actually get dressed up. He looked like a Galra now, so the security guard likely wouldn’t even recognize him. He would be able to wander around freely in this state. Well, kinda. He would have to stay close to his friends. He often forgot he was in his   
‘mating season’ and that people could smell that on him. 

They were going into a place full of different alien species, any of which could attempt to take advantage of him at any moment. That was the last thing he needed, and with his head in the clouds like it was he would be really vulnerable. 

“We should stay in teams.” Shiro said with a smile as he fixed his hat. “This is the first time Matt and I have ever been so we’ll be together and wander around on our own.”

“I will stay with Allura.” Coran said quickly. “It is unsafe for the Princess to be without me in such an unfamiliar territory.” 

“Hunk and I can be on a team.” Lance smiled. “I wanna see this ‘Sal’ guy he talked so much about before heading to the ‘Earthling’ store.”

“Then I guess that means that Keith and I are on a team.” Pidge sounded happy about that; then again Keith guessed it was simply because she had just as many questions for him that Krisella had. “Where do you want to go first, Keith?”

“I want to go to the Earthling Store.” He said. “Depending on what they have they could have been to Earth recently, and if that’s the case we might be able to get information on what’s been going on at home.” 

“That’s… actually a really good idea.” Pidge said with a smile. “I can’t believe I didn’t think about that.”

Keith smiled. “Hey, you can’t get all the good ideas.” He shrugged.

“Then it’s decided. We’ll all meet at the fountain in two hours; if, of course, we don’t all end up at the Earthling Store in the end.” Shiro smiled.

They all walked into the mall before splitting up in their groups and staying close to their ‘buddy’. Keith walked a little behind Pidge, simply because he didn’t know where he was going. 

“So.. how are you doing, Keith?” Pidge asked. “You feeling any better?”

“It’s on and off.” He admitted. “Depends on the day, really…”

“It’s amazing how quickly you changed on a molecular level; I mean, humans don’t change that quickly. It was incredible to watch such a radical change happen so quickly.” Pidge fixed her glasses. “But, well… I expected the transformation to give you more of a Galran height; you’re still pint-sized.” She grinned at him.

Keith blushed and puffed out his cheeks in embarrassment. “H-hey, I’m not that short!”

“Dude, you’re the second-shortest on the team; I’m the only one shorter than you. Even Lance is a few inches taller than you.” She chuckled. “Anyway, um… I was talking with Ryner when we were on Olkarion…” She trailed off, rubbing the back of her neck.

Keith’s heart began to pound. Had Ryner told her? He wasn’t ready for anyone to know; Ryner said she wouldn’t tell anyone; had she broken her promise?

“She said it was highly possible that your molecular design may never go back to being human in structure… You could keep your ears and tail and most likely a bit of fur for the rest of your life… but, y’know, it wouldn’t be a total disaster; you’re cute like this.” Pidge shrugged, making Keith blush.

“W-what? N-no, I’m not cute.”

“Yeah, you are.” She chuckled. “You’re like a big plushie, or like one of those super-fluffy cats; a Maine Coon? Anyway, I can see what Lance sees in you. I’m not into you like that, I mean, ick; but again, I can see the appeal visually.”

Keith smiled. “Well, thank you, Pidge… I think?”

The Earth Store looked exactly like all the others except it said ‘Terra’ above it and the small display next to the door had older video game consoles and some tapes from the 1990’s on it. Honestly, it almost made Keith laugh, but he was too interested to actually make the sound..

They walked into the store and was instantly met by the stereotypical alien humans normally thought of. He was close to Shiro in height, with grey-blue skin, a pointed triangular head, and large black eyes. He was wearing ‘Hippie’-like clothing and some of the music being played in the background. It was alien music ut it was clear he was doing his best to create an ‘Earth’ atmosphere.

“Hello, may I interest you in the latest Earth Fashions?” He asked, surprising Keith. His ‘Earthling’ was okay but his English was phenomenal.

“Um, we’re just looking right now.” Keith said as Pidge ran over to one of the cases, looking at some of the stuff inside. She was probably focused on the video games for the system that didn’t even work. “I do have a question, though… have you been to Earth recently?”

“Recently? No, unfortunately not; though I do have some sources from Earth. Why, what would you like to know?”

“Um… despite what we look like… um… We’re from Earth.” Keith dug in his pocket and pulled out his wallet, showing him his licence. “Some stuff has happened but that’s me. That’s what I look like. A-anyways, we were wondering if… anything… ‘big’ has happened in the past year?”

He thought for a moment, comparing Keith with his photo. “Well… no, as much as I know things are about the same as always. Fighting wars on their own planet over who is the ‘best’ human and whatever… but… there is one thing that comes to mind. They used to have a Space Program… I’ve heard rumors that they’ve canceled that. Something about a bunch of missing kids. I wonder if they mean you. Is your friend an Earthling too?”

“I’m not quite sure at times.” Keith began to feel uncomfortable. He was blowing their cover. “Was there anything else you can think of?”

“No, I’m afraid that was it.”

“I… I see.” Keith smiled. “Thank you.” He walked over to a bookshelf in the corner and began looking through all of them. To no surprise he found some that had been popular on   
Earth once upon a time such as Harry Potter, Maximum Ride, 50 Shades of Grey (yuck), and Twilight. There were also other books he had never heard of before, but he had never really had the chance to be much of a reader on Earth.

A few shelves down there were movies: Dirty Dancing, Dante’s Peak, Home Alone, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Sixth Sense; at least those were the ones that caught his attention. It was a little cool that he had actually seen all of those movies, but it was also kind of annoying that they had no way to watch it on the ship. He’d have to just wait until they got back to Earth and he could watch it there. Keith then looked around for another moment and frowned. There was a crib in the corner behind the counter.

“Where did you get that?” Keith asked, trying not to sound accusing.

“Oh! I found it in a place called Arizona, an abandoned cabin in the middle of nowhere. Cleaned it, fixed it, and now I’m putting it up for sale. Granted, that was years ago. Not even sure what it does, but-”

“It’s a crib.” Pidge explained as she came over. “It’s what we put babies in on Earth when they’re too young to have a bigger bed.” She walked over, touching it. “This is really cute… you did a good job.”

“Thank you.” The alien smiled happily.

Keith examined it a little longer, then frowned. There was something familiar about it but nothing he was going to spend time worrying about. He would eventually need a crib or something like it to help them raise the baby. His hand instinctively went to his stomach with a frown.

“Keith? Are you okay?” Pidge asked with a frown. “You’re not feeling sick again, are you?”

“Huh?” He quickly moved his hand away from where he was touching. “Oh, no; I mean, it’s just a little bit of a stomach ache. I’ll be fine.”

“So you say you’re from Earth, and I answered your question, so is it alright if I ask you a few of my own?”

“Sure, shoot.” Pidge smiled.

“I honestly don’t know what half of these objects do. Would it be much trouble if… can you show me?”

Pidge’s face lit up at the idea of helping him figure out the electronics. “Sure!” She walked over to a radio in the corner and grabbed the cord. “All we need is a power source!”


	26. Sal

Sal recognized Hunk instantly. With or without a disguise Hunk was hard if not impossible to miss half the time. His face lit up as he walked through the crowd to Hunk and Lance, his restaurant now full of happy customers.

“My friend!” He said. “You have returned!”

Hunk chuckled. “It’s good to see you too, Sal.” Hunk smiled. “I see business is flourishing.” 

“Yes! Thanks to you I have twice as many people eating here a day and the food is good enough that I can charge more! I have enough to send my girls to proper schooling thanks to you! Please, you and your friend help yourselves! It is the least I can do for the people who saved my business.”

Hunk lit up. “Thank you.” He pushed his hair out of his face. “Oh; Lance, this is Sal. Sal, this is my friend Lance.”

Lance and Sal shook hands, both smiling.

Sal had lost quite a bit of weight since Hunk had seen him last and he looked a lot healthier, too; Hunk was more than a little happy for him. He seemed to be proud of himself, not to mention the smile on his face only seemed to add to it all.

Hunk and Lance put in their orders, then after a short time it was brought to them.

“So, Sal; how many kids do you have?” Lance asked with a smile.

“Five little girls.” He dug in his pocket and pulled out what looked like a wallet. He then opened it and showed them a photo. To their surprise, two of them looked to be one age while the other three looked to be younger but also the same ages as one another.

“Woah, they’re beautiful.” Lance smiled, digging in his own pocket and pulling out the only photo he had of his family. “I have a big family too; seven siblings and eleven nieces and nephews.” He explained.

“They’re interesting-looking!” Sal cooed. “What species are you? I have never seen anybody looking like you guys before.”

“Oh, we’re from Earth; it’s a planet far, far away from here.” Hunk explained.

“I’ve only ever heard of Earth from the stall owner on the other side of the store.” Sal said with a thoughtful look. “Surprising to meet a few of you here, though. What are you guys doing way out here?”

Lance and Hunk looked at each other. Should they tell him that they killed Zarkon or would it put them and Sal in danger? This wasn’t good…

“It’s a long story.” Lance chuckled. “Doesn’t matter; so, tell us about your kids.” He put his photo away.

He smiled brightly. “Well, the eldest two are fifteen and the younger three just turned ten last week.”

“Wow, is it rare to have multiples?”

“Oh! Not at all.” Sal smiled. “In fact, it’s rare to have singles. See, us Galra typically have ‘litters’ of between two to six. The more there are the healthier they tend to be as well. I’ve never met somebody who just has a single child before. Tell me, are multiples rare where you come from?”

“Rare? No, one to two are common. More than that, though; that’s a little more rare. But it’s also the opposite for us; the more kids there are the more sickly and small they end up being.”

“Woah, this is quite interesting!” He chuckled.

“I’m glad you think so; normally, if we talked to other humans like this they get bored and ignore us.”

“That’s not right.” Sal crossed his arms and shook his head. “But I understand. I seem to do that with other Galra now and then… perhaps I should try working on that now that I no longer have to worry about how I'm going to support my family.”

“Good for you, Sal.” Hunk said, taking a large bit of his food. “We’ll have to go meet some of our friends in a while; would you like some help before we do, though?”

Sal chuckled. “I sure would, but I understand if you’re busy.”

“Not at all; we’d be happy to help.” Lance grinned.

 

“This place is huge.” Matt smiled. “What are we going to do if we get lost?”

Shiro chuckled. “I’m not sure. But we’ll be lost together, so… we won’t have to worry about getting lonely or anything.” 

Matt blushed, moving his hand over as he took Shiro’s hand lovingly. A soft pink blush dusted Shiro’s face but he held Matt’s hand back, giving it a gentle squeeze. Shiro and Matt had dated for a few weeks in the Garrison, but after they were taken they stopped all their plans at once. Having Matt back with him, though… he felt complete. All the pain and fear he had felt before was gone and replaced by all the love he felt for Matt.

“Are we sure the others are going to be okay wandering around on their own?”

“Yeah. They’re in teams, so they can’t get into too much trouble. They’ll keep an eye on each other.”

“I hope you’re right. Leaving Katie alone is hard; I mean, I know she’s with others, but just knowing that she isn’t near me where I can protect her… it’s hard.”

“Matt, Katie almost saved the universe on her own several times before we found you, and she saved the entire team just as many times. If anything, all the aliens here should be afraid of her. She’ll be fine, Matt.” Shiro leaned close to Matt’s ear. “Besides… I’d rather have you focused on me.”

Matt’s face turned a darker red as he put his head on his shoulder with a whimper. “You’re making me wish we had stayed on the ship…”

“Well, then hold onto that feeling, because I’ll make it up to you when we get back.” 

“You better keep that promise.”

“Oh, I will.” Shiro chuckled. “Have I ever lied to you?”

“Funny, there was that one time back in the-”

“Okay, okay, point taken!” Shiro softly bit his lip. “You know I just wanted to make that special for you…”

Matt kissed his cheek. “I know, but next time lock the door. Okay?”

“D-deal.”


	27. The True Fear

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually cried while writing this Chapter. Both happy and sad tears so I hope that you guys can suffer with me.

“Disgusting! Why the hell would you think that telling us this was a good idea?!” Hunk yelled, shoving Keith as he bumped into Allura.

“I could handle you being Galra, but this is too much.” She said before Coran pulled him away.

“Get away from the Princess, you Galra scum!”

Keith fell backwards again, this time hitting Matt and Pidge.

“And to think we thought of you as a friend!” Matt said.

“We should have never backed you up.” Pidge growled.

“G-guys, please! It’s not my fault!” Keith turned around to face Lance, who wasn’t even looking at him. “L-Lance, please! Y-you have to believe me! I didn’t know this would happen! I didn’t know it was possible! I didn’t know.”

“I can’t believe I loved you…” Lance said and Keith felt as though he could no longer breathe.

“Get out of here.” Shiro growled. “You’re no brother of mine.”

The mix between pain and fear was too much and Keith quickly retreated, running to the hanger of the Red Lion, who seemed to be waiting for him. But instead of the warm feeling the room gave him, it was cold.

“Red, p-please! Let me in!”

-Why? So you can lie to me more? No. You’re not my Paladin… you’re not my friend… I don’t know why I even let you get close to me!- She got up and roared at him. -YOU DON’T DESERVE FRIENDS! YOU SHOULD JUST FACE IT! YOU’RE MEANT TO BE ALONE!!!-

There was enough force behind the roar that Keith fell backwards and kept falling until he landed back in that old Arizona cabin, sitting on the couch. Tears were streaming down Keith’s face; he couldn’t breathe and no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t calm down. This couldn’t be happening. Not again. Not to him… please…

The sound of a baby crying snapped him out of his tear-filled state. He looked around and his eyes soon landed on a small white crib in the corner of the room. There was movement inside the crib, suggesting life. Now he was really scared. A baby? Was it his baby?

He got up, his legs shaking as he approached the crib, his lips trembling as he reached towards the wooden bars. He didn’t manage to touch it before the cabin doors opened suddenly and a familiar and hated man walked in. Zarkon.

“Kill the halfling and take its’ cursed spawn!” He ordered. “They are an embarrassment to all Galra.”

“No!” Keith yelled as his arms were grabbed. “No! Don’t take them! Don’t take them! They’re all I have left! They’re my family! Please! Don’t do this!” He screamed. “No!”

 

“Keith! Keith, wake up! You’re having a nightmare! Wake up!”

Keith’s eyes snapped open as he gasped, looking around. He had fallen asleep against a stack of car tires in the corner of the Earth shop. He felt sick to his stomach, incredibly dizzy, and from the feeling his stomach had the baby had been just as freaked out as he had been. He knew it had been a dream, but it had been so real.

“I-I-I”m okay.” Keith said, though he felt like he was going to throw up. “I-I just… I need a moment.”

“We should get you back to the ship.” Pidge touched his head. “You’re really warm…”

“W-warm? M-me… u-um…”

“I will tell your friends that you went to your ship.” The alien said. “Do not worry.”

“Thank you.” Pidge helped Keith to his feet and Keith felt the baby settle again. “Come on, Keith…”

“R-right… okay.”

Keith and Pidge walked slowly out of the mall and towards the castle. Pidge kept her arm softly around his waist while his arm was over his shoulder. He was in bad shape; he felt like he was melting, and on top of that he felt like he was going to be sick. If this pregnancy didn’t kill him, then keeping it secret would. But would they accept it, or would they freak out like they did in his dream?

He had to try… he had to tell somebody. Somebody- anybody needed to know besides him and the two people on Olkarion.

“Pidge… is… we’re friends, right?”

“Huh? Of course; what kind of stupid question is that?”

“Well… I-I have a secret… b-but I'm afraid this will change the way you think about me…”

“You turned into a furry; there’s not much else you can do that’ll shock me or freak me out.”

“I, um… I doubt that, but… okay.” Keith looked around once they made it into the Castle. After being sure that nobody else was there, he sighed. “I’m pregnant.”

Pidge stopped in her tracks, nearly dropping Keith. “You what now?”

“Pregnant.” Keith moved away from her slowly, afraid that she would push him or punch him or react violently.

Pidge looked at him, scanning his face as though looking to see if he was lying or something. “Like… with a baby?”

“Y-yeah. I found out on Olkarion; that’s why I snuck out. They wanted to be sure… and well… we’re sure now. I’m pregnant. It’s too early to know if it’s a boy or girl… or even if it’s human… but…” His hand went to his stomach protectively. “It’s there… please, don’t hate me.”

“Hate you? Keith, this is amazing! Why in the world would I hate you; this is incredible! This should be impossible but you’re… wow!” She messed up her hair. “We have to run some of our own tests! We have to know how far along you are-”

“Two weeks, almost three.”

“How long is the gestation period before you give birth?!”

“Twenty to twenty-three weeks…”

“Woah… so the baby could be, like… really little…”

“Yeah… Luckily from what Ryner said, it should be okay… she wants me to go back to Olkarion when it gets closer to time so she can make sure the baby and I are healthy…”

Pidge smiled. “This is really happening…”

“Y-yeah… so, you’re… not mad? Not gonna scream, or yell, or anything?”

“No, I’m not… at least, not mad. I might scream because this is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!” She said, waving her arms. “Who else knows?! Have you told Lance?!”

“No… actually, you’re the only person who knows… Shiro asked me, because he overheard me talking to Ryner… but I got scared and said that I wasn’t…”

“Woah… really? I feel so V.I.P. access, but… you should tell the others as soon as you can.”

“I-I know I should. But I’m scared. What if the others lash out? What if they hate me? What if Red hates me?”

“Nobody is going to hate you.” She said, touching his shoulders. “We’re a team, but more importantly we’re a family. What makes you think that anybody would hate having a baby on board?”

Shiro’s words echoed in his head and Keith looked down. -The last thing we need right now is a baby on the ship…-

“Seriously? I think I should help you tell everyone. I mean, are you genetically female now? Are you able to have twins or something? How are you even going to have them; I mean, you kinda aren’t… you don’t exactly have my parts to make this easier. This is… wow, this is making my brain spin. Do you think the baby will be purple? Or will the human genetics win out? Do you think it’ll have a tail? Maybe it’ll be like a kitten! Oh my gosh, a baby kitten-thing! That’d be-”

“Pidge, one question at a time! First of all, no; I’m not female. I’m still all male. Second of all, there’s only one; I don’t know if more is possible… and I was supposed to develop the parts during my transformation but I didn’t… so I’ll have to get a C-section… I think the baby will look like a person… but…” Keith blushed. “I have a feeling that it’ll have some Galra properties.”

“Like a tail?!”

Keith laughed. “Maybe; I don’t know. I'm thinking maybe flexibility or something simple… I hope it’s not too big… I want to raise them on Earth… or at least the ship and I don’t want them feeling ‘different’ or ‘out of place’, ya’know?”

Pidge nodded slowly. “Yeah, I get it… I say it’d be awesome for them to have a tail or ears but I see your point. Okay, Keith. I’ll come up for a plan to tell the others but we should run some tests when you feel better… until then, though, you should go upstairs and rest. It can’t be easy for your body to develop that baby.”

“You’re telling me. It’s only been a few weeks and I’m exhausted.”

“Kinda makes me feel sorry, but at the same time you’re a guy. Having a baby. I feel like there’s a ton of irony and karma behind that.” Pidge grinned slightly.

“Oh shut up, Miss Vindictive Female.” He turned and walked further into the Castle. “I’m going and resting; you happy?”

“I’ll be happier if you both end up with a cute little tail, but for now yeah; I’m happy.”

Keith blushed, the tip of his tail puffing up at the comment as he walked up to his room and laid down on the bed, ignoring the fact that parts of his bed were still sticky from his adventures with the Olkarion toy. Somebody finally knew his secret, and while it felt like part of the burden was gone… there were still so many others who needed to know the truth about what was going on with him.

Though the two people he really cared about finding out were Lance and Shiro… they were important to not only him but the baby as well. After all, Shiro would probably be the baby’s uncle and Lance… Lance was the baby’s father. How was he going to explain that one? Oh, yeah, by the way, I’m a guy whose species doesn’t let the males have babies but I did, and this guy made you too! Yeah, that would go over well. Not to mention how Lance would take the news… How was he even going to tell him?

He turned onto his stomach with an irritated grunt, forcing himself to focus on sleeping instead of worrying despite how hard it was to keep the thoughts at bay. After a second he turned his hips, keeping the baby unsquished. After another minute he put a pillow against the small bulge. Maybe the baby wanted a pillow too.

“So… I guess you’re really there…” He sighed, looking down at his stomach. “I wonder what you’ll be like… will you be loud and hyper like your dad? A massive flirt? Or will you be like Pidge? She’s super smart and she’s always wanting to figure everything out; it’d be okay if you ended up like her. Well… you like food so you could be like Hunk. Granted, I’m not sure if I could afford to feed you on Earth if you continue eating like Hunk. Maybe you’ll be like Shiro; he’s really cool and a great leader. I could see you making a good leader. Are you going to be like Coran? A complete dork?” He laughed. “Or a kickass princess like Allura… or… will you be like me? A loner? I hope you’re nothing like me… hell, I hope you don’t even look like me.” 

The baby moved slightly but not as much as it had been most of the day.

“Oh, right… you’re probably tired… I should let you sleep…” He pulled a blanket up and over himself, but stopped just under his ribs before sticking his feet out. The baby needed the warmth, he knew that, but it still felt like he was cooking. “You know… even if it ends up being just the two of us and nobody else wants to be a part of this small family, you and I will be alright. Not to mention there’s a family on Olkarion that is willing to take you if I can’t… But… I already love you… giving you up will be hard.”

After a minute he frowned, realizing that he had stopped thinking of the baby as an ‘it’ and started thinking of it as ‘his’. Well… so much for denying its’ existence.


	28. Red and Blue

Keith sat up on his bed with a frustrated growl. He was exhausted but he couldn’t sleep. Whenever he tried to close his eyes and start to fall asleep, he would hear the angry voices in his head telling him how he failed, how he was disgusting, how he didn’t deserve to be a part of the team. It was frustrating, but there was a lot he couldn’t change. His fear was controlling him, and until he got the truth out to the rest of his team it would keep controlling him.

He climbed out of bed and stripped out of his normal clothes before putting on black sweatpants and a tight red t-shirt. He might as well look like he had been able to get some sleep, even if it wasn’t the case. He didn’t want to worry his friends more than he had already. Once out of bed he looked at his reflection, running his fingers through his hair to fix it slightly.

He looked down at his stomach, touching it gently. “Okay, now listen, you. Try not to wiggle too much, okay? You’re making me feel sick. I can’t be sick around my friends; they’re going to get worried and until they know about you, we can’t have any funny business.”

Keith blushed when he realized what he was doing. “Oh my god, I'm talking to you… People will think I’m crazy.”

Keith walked out of his room and down the halls of the Castle towards the Bridge, though he stopped halfway at Red’s hanger. One of the most important people to know about his pregnancy was Red. He hated the idea about telling her because chances are that she would tell Blue, who could easily tell Lance. Hopefully… she would be able to keep it a secret, whether she approved of all of this or not.

“Hey, girl.” Keith reached his hand out towards her and she laid down in front of him.

-Yes, Keith? You seem… tired, I think. Your eyes are black and not in a good way.-

Keith smiled weakly as he ran his fingers over her large nose. “You and I need to talk, Red. It’s important… but it’s also important that you keep it a secret… please. Blue can’t know.”

-...Do I need to be concerned for you, cub?-

“Well, um, not exactly… but…” Keith took a deep breath. He was really scared to tell her, but he knew she needed to know. If she had gotten as mad as she had about not being the first Lion he and Lance had gone to, she would be furious if she found out from someone else. “Red, I’m pregnant. I mean… I’m having my own cub.” He explained, hoping to make it so she understood the situation.

It was far too quiet for far too long, making Keith fear the worst. She hated him, she would never forgive him, she-

Keith let out a surprised cry when Red all but howled in joy.

-I’M GONNA BE A GRANDMA! I’M GONNA BE A GRANDMA! SUCK IT, BLUE! YOU GOT NOTHING ON ME!-

Keith wanted to point out the fact that if she was going to be a ‘Grandma’ that Blue would be a ‘Grandpa’ but he wasn’t going to bring it up, not when she was so happy. However, her loud noises drew the attention of the rest of the Voltron crew. They had likely just returned from the Mall, and to be met by such a noise was probably more than surprising.

“Keith, what’s going on?” Shiro asked as Red jumped to her feet, her tail swishing. 

-Who was it?! Lance? Ooh, was it Shiro? God, I hope it was Shiro; I mean, Lance is cute and all but Shiro? Oh god, he’s like two extra scoops of dreamy!-

Keith shushed her, putting his hands up. “Red, you need to calm down. We’ll talk about it later…” He then turned to his friends. “S-sorry, we were just talking and Red got excited.. She does that.”

“Really?” Pidge asked. “I hardly see her do much of anything.”

“Try spending a day with her.” Keith sighed. “Anyways, how was shopping?”

“I got a lot of shiny things!” Allura smiled. “I can’t wait to show you all!”

“Hunk and I helped Sal with more food.” Lance smiled.

“Matt and I just wandered around.” Shrugged Shiro with a blush that Matt shared. “We came back as soon as we found out that you and Pidge left early. Everything okay?”

Pidge and Keith looked at each other. If they found out he wasn’t ‘feeling well’ or that he had had a ‘nightmare’, they would freak out.

“I, uh…” Keith began and Pidge jumped in.

“I found some lady products at the store.” She said quickly, which wasn’t a lie. “So I brought some back ASAP. I was crampy so Keith walked me back and took care of me.” Pidge smiled. “Sorry for the scare.”

“OH!” Matt blushed. “T-that makes sense; your cramps have always been pretty bad. Should we go in and get more?”

“N-no, that’s okay.” Pidge was blushing dark red, looking at Keith in a way that said ‘you owe me one’. “I think I bought enough.”

“That doesn’t explain why Red is freaking out.” Coran said, watching the Red Lion pounce on Blue. The two tumbled for a bit, Blue seeming highly irritated. “Is she alright?”

“She’ll be fine. Something smells good.” Keith said, his nose twitching at the scent. “What is that?”

“Sal let us take some of his extra food that he wasn’t going to be able to sell today.” Lance explained. “Come on, there’s enough for everybody.”

“I hope so; I’m hungry enough I could eat an elephant.” Keith said, looking at Red as she kept yelling happily.

-IMMA BE A GRANDMA! I LOVE CUBS! I WANT A CUB! OH MY GOD! ROSE! CONVINCE YOUR PALADIN TO MAKE US CUBS!-

The Green Lion opened one eye, speaking to Red as her tail lashed slightly. Keith wished he could hear what was being said, but he could only hear Red. Keith then shook his head and followed them all out of the room and up to the lunch room. The further they got, the better it all smelled to Keith. He almost felt as though he was starving.

Keith sat down at the table between Pidge and Hunk, while Shiro and Matt sat across the table from him. Keith placed a large amount of food onto his plate and began eating happily. He was so hungry! Why hadn’t he realized he was so hungry until now?!

Pidge looked at Keith with a frown before whispering to him. “Keith, now is a perfect time to tell them.” She said. “What are you so afraid of?”

Keith gulped down the food in his mouth before whispering back. “I want to tell Lance in private… this isn’t something that I can just tell him out in the open in front of everybody else. It would be rude…”

Pidge nodded. “Yeah, no kidding. I won’t press you too hard, but you should try to tell them before the end of the week or they might find out on their own. Lies and secrets aren’t a good thing to have when you’re part of a team, y’know.”

Keith nodded, eating more food. He looked over his friends slowly, then smiled gently; with everybody smiling, eating, and having a good time it easily reminded him of the family he had always wanted. No matter how many orphanages he had been to, the homes he had been put in and kicked out of, and even the few memories he had of his family in Arizona… nothing felt as right as it did right now. This was what he needed.

This is what he hoped the baby would be raised in. It didn’t matter if it were on Earth or not as long as this family - his family - were there for it. He would be happy.

 

Keith paced up and down the hall that night as they drove through space towards Balmara. Keith couldn’t help but think about what he and Lance had talked about only a few days ago. About them wanting to be ‘friends’, and only friends. Would this ruin that? Of course it would! It wasn’t a little thing; it was a huge thing! It was a baby, for hell sake! It was more than a little frustrating thinking about what to do. He knew Lance deserved to know the truth more than anybody else on the ship, but Lance was also the person he knew would react badly to the news.

The door opened and Lance peeked out.

“Keith, why don’t you come in?” Lance chuckled. “I can’t sleep with you pacing and growling outside my door all night.”

“I-I was growling? S-sorry.”

“Shut up and come in.” Lance said, opening the door further.

Keith hesitated. He knew that if he went in he would have to say something… but he also knew running away would only make him look suspicious. It was time. Now or never.   
Keith sucked in a breath, then walked into the room. Lance closed the door behind them before the two of them sat down on the bed. 

“You okay, Keith?” Lance asked with a frown. “You look scared. Did something happen?”

“N-no.” Keith began to nervously play with his hands. “L-Lance, do, um… you and I are supposed to be ‘just friends’, right? T-that’s what you wanted?”

Lance scowled worriedly. “A little; I mean… I’m not sure. You didn’t come in here for sex, did you?”

Keith felt his face heat up. “W-what?! No! N-not at all!” He sighed. “Lance… what I’m saying is that…”

Damn it, this shouldn’t be so hard! Just come out and say it!

“I’m pregnant, Lance.”


	29. React

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about this chapter you guys, I finished writing all the others weeks ago and I've been posting them one by one but this chapter I've really been struggling with, so this chapter probably isn't very good. I did my best with this and all your comments really help encourage me to keep writing... I really hope this chapter doesn't let anybody down. Like I said I've been struggling with this one chapter for almost a week. I've restarted this chapter like seven times with different openings every time.
> 
> Anywho guys, while I know the Gender of the baby and you all do not I'm going to put some of the names I'm torn on (boys and girls) ad the names the get the most votes will likely be used. So if the baby is a boy I'm torn between:
> 
> Orion, Apollo, (Seeing a theme yet?) or Atlas?
> 
> if it's a Girl:
> 
> Artemis, Pandora, or Nova.
> 
> Now, this doesn't mean that you cannot suggest baby names, in fact I would love if you did! <3 Please continue following this story it really means alot to me that something I enjoy writing is liked by so many people.

Lance and Keith sat in silence for what felt like hours, both of them looking at each other with different expressions on their face. Keith looked terrified and pale, as though he was only a few seconds away from throwing up, while Lance looked confused and almost just as afraid as Keith. Eventually though, Keith broke the silence.

“I-I’m sorry…”

Lance continued staring at Keith, his blue eyes scanning Keith’s face as though looking for any sign that Keith was lying to him.

“I had no idea it was even possible until Ryner told me… apparently it’s what makes me an ‘Omega’; I can carry children… i-if I had known I wouldn’t have put you into this situation. I-I mean, we’re both guys, an-and while I really like you I understand that this is exactly what you were afraid of. A-a long relationship for life, a-and that’s essentially what a baby is, right? A chain that forces you with another person?” Lance seemed hurt at these words but also seemed unable to speak. “W-which is why I understand i-if you hate me a-and if you don’t want anything to do with me or the baby. I-I totally get it, a-and Ryner did too; s-she offered to take it if we didn’t want it… I-I won’t force you to be a part of this at all… b-but you needed to know.”

Lance’s mouth fell open but still nothing came out, as though his mouth wasn’t able to catch up with his thoughts long enough to say anything.

“I-I’m going to, um… I’m going to go… I’m probably the last person you want to see right now.” Keith stood up, rubbing his arm nervously as he took a step towards the bedroom door. Tears were beginning to form and they were hard, if not impossible, to hold back as they started dripping down his face.

He didn’t manage to make it too far, however, before his wrist was grabbed and he wasn’t able to take another step.

“Keith, w-wait.” Lance’s voice was quiet.

Keith couldn’t look at Lance but from the scent in the air, the crack in Lance’s voice, and the way he was shaking Keith had a feeling he was close to crying too. Keith looked down at his feet as Lance pulled him back until the back of his legs hit the bed. Lance wrapped his arms around Keith’s stomach as he hugged him.

“Are… you being serious right now, Keith? Please, if you’re kidding it's really not funny…”

Keith tensed up and shook his head. “N-no… I'm not kidding…” He said. “I’m sorry… I-I wish I was.”

Lance hugged him tighter before suddenly yanking Keith down onto the bed. He then pinned him to the bed, holding his wrists down softly. Lance had tears in his eyes, dripping down his face and onto the bed next to Keith. Keith was trying not to panic, not to struggle, but he was scared. Why was Lance crying? Was he really that upset by the news?!  
Lance suddenly moved and Keith quickly closed his eyes. Was Lance going to hit him? Yell at him? Threaten him? Or would he do something worse?

Despite Keith’s fears, though, no pain came. In fact, Lance kissed Keith’s forehead. Keith’s eyes widened at the soft touch and he froze, unable to think of anything as he laid there. Why wasn’t he acting upset? This was better than he had been expecting, but it was also worrying at the same time.

“W-what are you doing? W-w-why aren’t you saying anything?” Keith asked.

“I don’t know what to say.” Lance said. “I’m sorry, happy… I’m scared, sure… I-I mean, it’s me we’re talking about here; I-Im terrified of commitment but… the thought of being a dad… it’s something I’ve always wanted. I-I don’t know how this is possible, and I’m not sure I can even think of the questions to ask.” Lance got up, careful not to put any weight on Keith’s stomach. “W-who else knows?”

“U-um, Ryner, Krisella, the Lions, and Pidge… i-it was actually all of them who finally convinced me to tell you. I-I was really beginning to consider doing this all my own. B-but that wouldn’t be right. Not for you and not for the baby…”

“I’m glad you told me.” Lance helped Keith sit back up, and while he was still on the Galra’s lap he hugged him tightly.

Keith gulped softly, a blush forming as Lance’s ocean-breeze scent filled his nose. Lance smelled so good all the time; it was making this situation even harder. It was a constant reminder of just how Keith really felt for Lance. “W-what are we going to do?”

“For now… we both have things to figure things out but first thing first is that we have to tell the others. They need to know before the next fight so we can keep an eye on you…”

“I-I’ll be fine… but… I lied to Shiro, Lance. H-he overheard the conversation and… when he confronted me… I lied. I told him I wasn’t pregnant… He said that… we don’t have time for a baby, that it’ll just be in the way… I don’t want to be in the way, Lance.” 

“You’re not, and you never will be. I’m not sure about how Shiro or Matt will react but I’m pretty sure that everybody else will be ecstatic about it. Relax, Keith; we’ll figure all of this out. I promise. We’ll tell Shiro first thing in the morning and we’ll tell him together… but until then is there anything I can do? I-I mean, like, are there a lot of differences from a normal pregnancy? Y-you’re not going to die during birth, are you?”

Keith frowned. “Well… a-about that... I was supposed to form that area during my transformation but… something happened and it didn’t work. I think that it’s because of my human side… I-I don’t know… in a few weeks I’ll have to go to Olkarion for a C-section… a-and Galra pregnancies don’t last as long as humans do… so… w-we only have about half the time.”

Worry came onto Lance’s face. “W-wait, will the baby even fully develop in that time? W-w-w-what if it doesn’t?”

“We have to hope it does…” Keith said sadly. “T-trust me, I’ve been thinking about this every day since I found out… they gave me a baby book but it’s in Galran and honestly… I'm not sure if anything will really apply to me. I’m kind of a freak…”

“You’re not; you’re special. If you weren’t, you never would have caught my eye.” Lance smiled. “We’ll figure it out, and no matter what happens we’ll work this out together. I promise.”

More tears formed in Keith’s eyes as they began to flow down his face, causing him to tightly close his eyes as he rubbed at them with a sobbing hiccup. He really didn’t want to do this alone, and now, he didn’t have to.

 

Keith was more than a little disappointed when he woke up alone in his room. He didn’t remember coming to his room, but he understood why he was alone. Just because Lance knew now didn’t change anything. It didn’t change the fact that Lance didn’t know if he loved him or not, or if Lance was going to want to spend the rest of his life with him.  
Though there was something about the current situation that made him feel incredibly lonely and depressed. He wanted somebody to hold close and to rub his back but there currently wasn’t anybody with him. Aside from his unborn baby, which was currently craving pickles, chocolate ice cream, and raisins, there was nobody else in the room.

Keith sat up slowly, rubbing his stomach. With the lack of movement Keith could only guess it was ‘sleeping’, if that was even something the baby could do. He had no idea about any of this. The only book that could help him was in Galran… which nobody on the ship could fluently read, so… he would have to give it to Pidge and hope she could translate it from the computer. 

Keith swung his legs off the edge of the bed with a frown. The idea of putting jeans on or anything other than the pajama bottoms and tank top he was already wearing seemed extremely frustrating. He debated for a long moment but eventually decided that until everybody knew what was going on, walking around in just pajamas would be a little weird or uncomfortable for everybody on the ship.

He changed into his normal clothes minus his jacket, which had made him uncomfortable and in the past few days had made him feel extremely claustrophobic and trapped. At the rate he was going this pregnancy was going to be the hardest thing he’d ever done, not to mention the birth process could literally kill him. He grabbed the Galran baby book, and once dressed Keith walked out into the hall, bumping directly into Hunk who quickly grabbed his arms to stop Keith from falling.

“Woah; sorry, Keith. You okay?”’

“Y-yeah; sorry, Hunk. I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.” Keith said, hiding the book behind his back.

“No problem. I was just going around to ask everybody what they wanted for breakfast. For some reason Pidge and Lance both told me to ask you. Guess it’s because you’ve been feeling sick, which makes sense; the last thing we want is to give you something that’ll make you feel worse…”

Keith smiled softly. Pidge and Lance were way too nice to him. “Um… honestly, I could eat anything right now but something like soup or cereal sounds really good.” Until Hunk knew about the baby he couldn’t request all the weird things he was craving, so he’d have to go with some normal stuff that sounded better to him than others.

“Okay, simple. I like it.” Hunk’s smile faded as he touched Keith’s head. “You okay, man? You’re looking a little pale today.”

“Just tired, Hunk. Had a rough night sleeping.”

“Okay… um, you might want to tell Allura that when you can; she has a training exercise planned for later today in the training deck. Maybe she’ll cut you some slack.” 

The idea of training was worrying; the last thing he wanted was for the baby to get hurt, but he also hated getting special treatment. He didn’t want to be doted on all the time by his friends because of this. He was still Keith; he could still fight and defend the universe… couldn’t he? Or was he just going to be in the way until the baby was born?

“I-I’ll do that; thank you, Hunk.” Keith watched Hunk walk away, a big smile on his face.

“Hey, Keith.” Lance waved, walking over with Pidge. The two were obviously incredibly curious about everything, and being the only two who knew the secret they seemed to be bonding over it.

“How are you feeling?” Pidge asked.

“Exhausted.” Keith sighed. “When I finally managed to fall asleep I needed to get back up out of bed to either use the bathroom because the baby was tap-dancing on my bladder or because I just couldn’t get comfortable…”

“Are you going to be okay?” Lance asked with a frown.

“I’ll be fine; just something I’ll have to get used to, I guess.” Keith held out the book to Pidge. “Ryner gave me this book on Galra babies so I was thinking that if you could translate it we could compare it to what we know about human babies and try to figure it all out.”

Pidge smiled, taking the book. “I’ll be happy to. I’ll get on that right after we eat.” She looked at the two of them. “So what are you guys going to do? I mean, how are you going to go about telling everybody else?”

“Well, we’re going to go look for Shiro now.” Lance began and Keith nervously crossed his arms. “After that we might just tell the others all at once… Though Hunk might feel left out if he finds out with Allura, Coran, and Matt, so maybe we should tell him after Shiro.”

“I was… I was actually thinking about that.” Keith said. “I think I want to tell Shiro alone, so maybe you should go tell Hunk while I do that.”

“Are you sure?” Lance asked.

“Y-yeah. I’m sure. Shiro should hear it from me… especially after I lied to him the way I did about it. He may get mad, and he may yell but… honestly, I deserve to be yelled at a little after keeping this a secret…”

“Okay, but if you need anything just come find us, okay?” Pidge said. “We’re all here for you, Keith.”

“Thanks, guys… wish me luck.” Keith said, then slowly made his way towards where Shiro typically was around this time. The Bridge.


	30. Fear and Hatrid

Shiro always looked focused no matter the time of day, but today there was a new type of focus on his face while he looked out the large bridge window towards the stars as they slowly traveled towards Balmara. His arms were crossed over his chest, his eyes narrowed. He looked so serious. The idea that he would be mad seemed to get more and more real the closer Keith got to him.

“Shiro, can we talk?” Keith said, his voice cracking. “It’s important.”

Shiro snapped out of the daze he seemed to be in and quickly looked over at him. “Of course; what’s wrong, Keith?”

Shiro’s dark chocolate brown eyes turned to look at him with a worried scowl. “Keith, what’s wrong?”

“U-um…” Keith crossed his arms slowly. “Shiro, I, um… you know how when people get scared they lie? L-like it’s an instinctual thing; you don’t even realize you’re doing it until it happens and it’s too late to turn back?”

“Yeah, I do. Where is this going, Keith?”

“Shiro… w-when you asked if I was pregnant a few days ago… I lied. I-I said I wasn’t, but… I-I was. Okay? I-I mean, I am. I’m pregnant…”

Shiro’s face twisted to slight worry before going to an angry expression. “You’re pregnant? Why didn’t you tell me then?!” He tried to keep his voice down but it was slowly turning into a shout. “Damn it, Keith; what if something had happened to you?! What if something happens to the team?! How could you be so irresponsible?!”

“I-I didn’t know. I-I didn’t think it was possible. I-I mean, I’m a guy, Shiro; I-I-I didn’t know… I-If I did I would have taken precautions; I-I wouldn’t have done it with anybody. I would have done all I could to protect the team… please… d-don’t hate me… n-not now…”

Shiro sucked in a breath. “I’m not… no, I'm a little mad but I’m more disappointed in you than anything, Keith. You should have told me the second you knew instead of hiding this from me… from the team. You could put us all in danger by keeping this a secret… it’s bad enough that it’s actually happened…”

Keith felt a lump forming in his throat. “S-Shiro…”

“No, Keith… this is a really bad situation. The Galra are still coming after us; we have to keep protecting the universe and now we have to do all we can to make sure that nothing happens to you here… Keith, this is such a bad position you’ve put all us in…”

“I’m sorry… I’m really sorry… I-I’ll try to stay out of the way… I promise, I’ll be able to take care of myself… Y-you guys don’t have to worry about me…”

Shiro sighed, taking a few steps towards the door. After a few steps Keith spoke up.

“P-please, Shiro, I hope you forgive me… because I want you to be the Godfather…” Keith’s voice cracked.

Shiro stopped instantly as he sucked in a breath and turned around, looking at Keith.

“I-I got really scared… I didn’t know how to feel about it and when you asked me, I panicked… I was still in shock. P-please, I hope you understand.”

Shiro sighed, opening his arms slowly. “Come here.”

Keith ran to Shiro, hugging him tightly as he began to cry against his chest. His sobs were loud and uncontrollable. Shiro rubbed Keith’s back caringly.

“Breathe, Keith, breathe… we’ll figure this out, I promise. I’m not as mad as I may seem… I’m just really confused… I can only guess that you’re just as confused… I’m sorry you have to go through all of this…”

Keith couldn’t form any words as he continued to sob and cling to Shiro.

 

To say Hunk took the news of Keith’s pregnancy very well was an understatement. Hunk went from a look of shock to a look of happiness. His face lit up and he quickly hugged Lance, lifting him up.

“I love babies!” He said happily, then put him back down. “But wait, aren’t you guys broken up?”

“Yeah… we are. I don’t know how we’re going to do that but we’ll figure that out when it closer to time for the baby to be born… so we have about twenty more weeks.”

“Wait, twenty? Don’t most babies come around forty weeks?”

“It’s because Keith is Galran; the baby will come a lot sooner than it would if Keith was full human…. I’m worried, Hunk.” Lance sat down slowly. “I mean… what if the baby does come at twenty weeks but is like, super-premature? What if the baby doesn’t even make it to the twenty weeks? What if Keith’s body rejects it?”

Hunk frowned. “Yeah… a-and I don’t mean to make the situation worse, but… didn’t Sal say that multiples were common? If Keith is struggling this bad maybe he’s going to have twins, and if it is just a single baby… what will happen if he has twins in the future?”

Lance’s heart began to pound harder in his chest. “You’re right… that’s kinda making the situation worse…” He crossed his arms.

“Sorry, man. Well, we’ll both be there for him from here on though… everybody knows, right?”

“Mostly, Keith is telling Shiro right now so the only ones who don’t know is Matt, Allura, and Coran…”

“Okay.” Hunk smiled. “We’ll be able to help him this way, though… I’ll see if I can find some foods that’ll help Keith feel better as well as help the baby develop; I’ll also do whatever else I can do to help. Do we know what the baby is? Like, boy or girl?”

“Um… I don’t think so. Keith is only a few weeks along and would probably only be around six weeks if it takes exactly half the time for the baby to form… my mom didn’t know the gender of any of my siblings until around week 18… and because we know nothing about Keith’s past we can only guess when we’ll find out….”

“Do you have any hopes?”

“Honestly? I hope it’s a girl, but Keith would be the one to know. Moms seem to know before anybody.”

“True.” Hunk chuckled. “Come on, Pops, you should help me make breakfast for everybody.”

“No problem!” He smiled brightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I just finished Season 3 of Voltron and if you've seen it I bet you have thought this same thing at least once: WTF?! AL RYS AU *frantic flailing*


	31. Voltron

Keith didn’t know how long he and Shiro stayed in that position, but the hug was likely longer than the one they had shared when they finally found Shiro again. Keith didn’t want to move, but he was becoming more and more afraid that the longer he kept hugging him the more likely he was to overstay his welcome in Shiro’s arms. Keith’s head throbbed from the pain of his constant sobbing, but the tears had finally stopped falling.

“You were really terrified about all of this, weren’t you, Keith?”

“I still am… I thought nothing would be harder than flying the Black Lion or learning how to feel after you vanished but… this… this is much scarier. I don’t want to fail the baby like how I feel my parents failed me… though I feel like if I have any part of the baby's life I’ll fail it…”

Shiro slowly let Keith go and took his face in his hands. “Keith, listen to me. You’re headstrong, a pain in the ass half the time, and sometimes I want nothing more than to tell you to shut the hell up… but you’re also my best friend in the world, and I know that deep down you can handle this. You’ll do great, I promise, and the rest of us will be here to help you. You won’t be alone.” Shiro softly kissed Keith’s forehead in the brotherly way that he often did. “I’m sorry I yelled at you.”

“N-no… I understand why you did… I really shouldn’t have lied to you how I did… you deserved to know the second I did…”

“Yeah, you should have, but seeing the way I reacted… and what I said when you didn’t tell me… I understand why you didn’t. I’m sorry if I hurt you, Keith…”

“It would have hurt more if you had actually said you hated me…” His voice was soft. “Um… Lance is telling Hunk and then we’re going to tell Matt, Allura, and Coran all at the same time.”

“Sounds like a plan; we should tell them as soon as we can, though. I’m sure they won’t appreciate being-”

A sudden alarm ringing through the air cut Shiro off as they turned towards the screen, an image popping open. The image was of multiple Galra ships surrounding them. The feeling of danger ripped through the air as Keith’s ears flattened against his head. There was a feeling he had about these Galra ships, a really bad feeling.

“We’re surrounded.” Shiro said as the rest of the team joined them on the bridge.

“Shiro, what do we do?” Pidge asked and Keith felt most eyes fall on him.

“What we always do.” Keith said quickly. “We form Voltron and take them out.” 

“Keith is right.” Allura said. “Until we have enough space for the Castle to get out of here we simply have no other choice.” 

“But-” Lance began.

“Come on, you guys; it’s not a big deal. Let’s go.” Keith rolled his eyes, then quickly ran to the elevator.

“What’s not a big deal?!” Matt yelled after them as they all separated. 

“We’ll explain later!” Pidge promised.

“You better!” Called Coran, as though trying to assert his dominance. “There, I showed them.” He said, puffing out his chest.

Once Keith climbed into Red, she sensed something was wrong.

-We are under attack, yet you seem… more sad then tense about this battle. What is the matter?-

“I told Shiro; he’s upset… and I can’t shake the feeling that something bad is about to happen…”

-Don’t worry, Keith; I will protect you.- Red purred.

“No, don’t worry so much about me. Protect Shiro; the last time I had this feeling Shiro vanished.”

-Alright, but I’ve got your back.-

“We have each other’s backs, Red.” He said, patting the seat softly in hopes that she could feel it. “Now, let’s get out there and protect the ship.”

-Okay, whatever you say.- Red said, taking a few steps before flying out of the Castle exit.

 

By the time they got out of the Castle the other Lions were already overrun by Galra fighters, each one making a more determined attempt to take down a lion than the last.

“We need to get enough space to form Voltron.” Shiro said, the Black Lion quickly ducking down as another fighter flew towards him.

“We will cause a distraction.” Allura said. “By attacking the main Galra fleet we should hopefully be able to draw them to attack the Castle long enough for you guys to do what needs to be done.”

“But you’ll have to make the transformation fast; if we want to wormhole we can only hold the shields up for seven of your Earth ‘minutes’ before we run too low on power!” Coran said.

Keith frowned. That didn’t make a lot of sense to him; they had been through hundreds of battles before and now they suddenly had a time limit? It was frustrating but at the same time Keith knew that they simply didn’t have the time to question it. They needed to get this taken care of before things got too out of control.

“Alright then, let’s do this.” Shiro said as the Castle began to fire at the Galra fleet. Once it was clear enough for them to move, Shiro smiled. “Form Voltron!”

They flew in formation for a short moment before they were able to form Voltron. For some reason, the entire thing took more energy out of Keith than it usually did. It was strange, but not something he was going to mention; the last thing they needed was a reason to treat him any differently.

-Keith, are you alright?-

“Y-yeah; I’m fine, girl.” Keith said with a frown. “You and I need to talk after this, though.”

-Indeed.-

Keith formed the sword while Pidge formed the shield. It was a typical position for them that worked flawlessly almost every other battle, so it was no surprise to have the sword rip through Galra fighters and the thick armor of the ships with seemingly no problem. The more they destroyed, the faster they seemed to move through space.

“We’re clear enough to wormhole! Paladins, get to the ship!” Allura shouted.

They turned direction and made their way towards the Castle; however, before they could make it too far one of the larger ships they had yet to get to charged up a new weapon that came from under the ship.

-Keith, something’s locked onto us!- Red warned, but it came too late for them to react as the shot slammed into the back of Voltron.

The pain that came from the blast was nothing like they had experienced before. It felt hot, like they were being boiled alive, but at the same time it caused Keith to shiver. The power from the blast was enough to make Voltron literally fall apart into the original Lions once again. They were all laying there, floating helplessly in the empty void of space as they were surrounded by Galra ships.

“Voltron, surrender now.” A frustrating and familiar voice said over the communications. Lotor. “You are surrounded.”

“Red; Red, you need to wake up.” Keith said and Red groaned.

-I’m here… I’m here… ugh… hold on, it’s hard to move.”

“Keith, are you okay?” Shiro asked.

“I’m fine… Red took most of the hit… she absorbed the energy… She’s not going anywhere.”Keith said, rubbing the dash softly. “Take it easy, girl; they can take care of it from here.”

“Paladins, we cannot come to you. If we want to wormhole you’re going to have to grab Keith and come here.” Coran said.

“I’ll cause a distraction.” Lance said. “Take care of him.”

“I said I’m fine, guys.”

“You’re not fine, Keith!” Snapped Shiro. “You’re pregnant! You shouldn’t even be out here!”

“You’re what?!” Shrieked Allura.

Keith growled and Red seemed to growl as well. “I don’t need to be babied, you guys! I’m a Paladin first!”

The Yellow and Green Lion supported Red’s side as they help it back to the Castle, the sounds of the continuing battle outside.

-We can still fight!- Red said, trying to get up but to everybody’s surprise Yellow slammed into her, knocking her down before roaring. Keith couldn’t understand what was being said but he had a feeling it was something along the lines of ‘Stay down’.

“Damn it… I’m sorry, Red…” Keith said as the others left him again. “This is all my fault; it’s my job to take some of the hits in situations like this… if you hadn’t protected me from that blast-”

-Then you and the child could both die… while I hate not being there for my brothers and sister, I would hate losing you more. They will be fine without us, Keith; at least for this fight… besides, I suspect you have a more current problem to worry about…” She said softly, and when Keith looked the rest of the Lions were in the ship again and he could feel the Castle taking off.


	32. Coal

Surprisingly the person who was the maddest about the pregnancy was Allura, and after she spent nearly an hour lecturing Keith she spent another ten minutes lecturing the others about helping him keep it a secret from her. The others listened to her intently but Keith had blocked her out about fifteen minutes into the yelling when she started using words that Keith didn’t understand. All the yelling though was finally enough for Keith, and when it was over he stood up, his ears down, his fur on end.

“This is exactly why I didn’t want to tell any of you! Because I knew something like this would happen! This always happens when a baby is brought into the picture! If they can’t come together, they fall apart; people fight and yell and team up on somebody - typically the one who has to deal with it all! I didn’t ask to be pregnant! Hell, I don’t even want to be pregnant! I never wanted to be a parent! I’m the loner, remember?! I’m destined to be alone and this child kinda ruins that for me!” He could feel tears forming. He wanted to be mad; he didn’t want to start crying. “I hate being doted on; I hate being the center of attention and people worrying about me! If I knew this would have been such a big deal I would have tried to find a way to-” He choked on his words. “Damn it.”

“Keith…” Allura’s voice was soft again. “I didn’t mean-”

“Shut up. Just all of you shut up and leave me alone.” Keith said, walking quickly towards Red’s hanger. He needed to make sure she was okay, even if he wasn’t.

The farther he walked, the more the tears fell down his face.

Stupid baby. Stupid team. Stupid Voltron. Stupid him… He knew he couldn’t expect to be happy. It just wasn’t in his blood. He wasn’t supposed to have a happy ending. After the baby was born he would leave it on Olkarion with Ryner for her to raise. It would have a better life there. A better chance to be happy than it ever would with a father like him.   
By the time he made it to Red’s hanger he was a sobbing mess, something Red reacted to instantly as she laid down in front of him, her face on the ground as she looked at him, a soft purr rippling through her throat.

-Keith? What is the matter?-

“I hate this, Red…” Keith walked over, putting his head against her nose as he shook almost as though he was shivering. “Every time I think my life’s turned around for the better I go down the same shitty tunnel I just got out of.”

-Keith, you…- Red sighed. -What can I do to help?-

“J-just tell me you’re okay.” Keith said. “Y-you took a hard hit out there… a-and I would hate to think that you’re in a lot of pain because you protected me…”

-I am fine.- Red said. -It will take much more than a single hit to take me down, you know that. Please, worry not; my systems are already back at 1oo% and in a few more vargas I will be ready for anything.-

“I-I’m glad…” He said, rubbing his eyes. He was about to tell Red to take care of herself when a sudden roar from a few hangers away grabbed his attention. “C-Coal?”

-Indeed; he is worried about you. It seems that connection you formed with him is not fully broken since Shiro’s return. You should go; I will be fine.” She gave him a soft nudge with her nose.

“R-right… thank you, Red.” Keith turned and walked away, going down the long hall to Black’s hanger, unsurprised to find Black standing there looking proud, though he was surprised to see his tail lashing from side to side. He hadn’t been able to talk to Coal since Shiro got back, though he also hadn’t tried in fear that Black would suddenly want him to pilot him again. Shiro couldn’t handle that kind of pressure… not again and not now. “H-hey, big guy.” He said, reaching towards him. 

Coal looked down at him. -I heard what was said. Granted, with as loud as Red was yelling it was no secret, though I am surprised that you would be allowed to fight in your… condition.-

“It’s not a ‘condition’, Coal. It’s a pain… I hate it.” He said, hugging himself. “Everybody is doting on me and acting like I can’t still fight; as far as I’m concerned until this baby is ready to come out and it’s hard to move I’m ready to fight and willing to do whatever it takes to protect the universe. This changes nothing.”

-if you truly believe this is a burden then why not rid yourself of it? Surely there must be a way to rid your body of the child without harming yourself. If you really want nothing to change, that seems like the only logical solution.-

The thought of killing the baby before it even had a chance made Keith sick. If it was stubborn and determined enough to be born into this world that it would find its’ way into the least suitable person, then the baby deserved a chance to be born and to fight for a chance. Keith really hated the idea, but the fact that he had considered it more than once only made him feel worse about the situation.

“N-no… I-I can’t do that…”

-And why is that? If you hate something that has yet to be brought into this world so much, then why not stop it from ever happening?-

“Because that’s wrong!” Keith yelled, stomping his foot. “I-It’s clearly a determined little shit; it wants a chance to fight. It wants a chance, and if I give up on it then I really would fail as a human… and a Galra… There’s nobody out there like me… nobody out there like it… just because I'm scared, and I hate the idea… doesn’t mean I should stop it… who knows what this child could be capable of in the future….”

Coal purred softly. -And that, dear Keith, is exactly why you must stay strong. Without you, without your friends, billions of people all around the universe would have a choice like that stolen from them and they wouldn’t be able to prove what they are capable of. Your friends simply want to make sure that you are safe enough to continue doing what you’re doing, and while it may seem annoying now, I know that deep down you know that it’s because they care for you.-

Keith thought for a long moment before he nodded slowly. “That… makes a lot of sense. Thank you, Coal… for helping me see that.”

-It’s what I do.- Coal purred again. -Now go. I suspect your friends are looking to talk to you again; you all have a lot to talk about.-

“Yeah, we do. Thank you again.” Keith said before turning and walking out of the hanger and towards the bridge where he had left his friends.

 

“I could have reacted better.” Allura sighed, sitting down and rubbing her temples. “I apologize…”

“It’s not your fault, Allura.” Shiro said. “Most of reacted pretty harshly… I am with you at the top of the list.”

“Keith just doesn’t understand that we all want to keep him and the baby safe.” Matt said, though it was clear that the word ‘baby’ was forced and clearly uncertain, as though he wasn’t sure if this was actually happening or not. Keith being half-Galran was hard enough for Matt to truly understand; how could somebody Shiro had known almost his entire life not only be part alien but now also be pregnant despite being a boy? Matt wasn’t sure, but after seeing so much it was hard to doubt anything. “But we don’t really understand how this is affecting him…”

“Matt’s right.” Pidge said. “I mean, imagine if it were any of us who suddenly found out we were pregnant and how scared we would be. I mean, for me I’ve always known there was a chance it could happen so it’s not as scary for me. But imagine how any of you would feel if you guys found out something like this? That you were all of a sudden pregnant…”

Everybody’s smiles quickly turned to a frown as all the human males looked at one another.

“It would… be hard. I mean the mood swings, the back pain, constantly having people looking at me like I was weirder than I already was…” Matt said.

“I wouldn’t be able to fight, not without people putting themselves in the way to protect me.” Added Shiro, crossing his arms.

“I’d have a lot of cravings… but holding it down might be hard with the morning sickness and all…” Hunk frowned.

“I’d probably feel cornered all the time… the same way I’ve wanted to be next to him every moment since I found out. For me I might like the attention but it’d become too much with time… but for Keith… he hates being cornered; he prefers to be alone…”

“So everything you guys feel like you would be experiencing during this time Keith actually is experiencing times ten because he already has being half-Galra on his plate. We have to give him some slack and work with him through this; we can’t just suddenly force him to do what we want him to because he’s pregnant. We have to be there with him through his choices until he’s ready to do it on his own. We’re his friends, his team… and while we’re all family on this ship Keith is an orphan; he’s not used to what we would call ‘sibling love’ or ‘family love’. I really don’t think even Shiro would be able to get through to him right now.” Pidge crossed her arms. “And until I’m done translating that Galran pregnancy book we have no idea what could possibly happen later in his pregnancy and what to expect for him.”


	33. Expecting

The next three days were quiet as they drove to the Balmara. Keith was thankful that the others let him have the space he wanted so long as his team knew he wasn’t doing something risky or dangerous that could hurt him or the baby as Keith crossed into his fourth week of pregnancy. It was going slow; at least, that’s what Keith was feeling but for everybody else it was going way too fast. Each member of the team did all they could to help Keith when he asked for it, though the ones who really got to help the most was Hunk and Pidge.

“Guys!” Pidge said happily as she ran into the lunch room where everybody was sitting and eating, though to no surprise of hers Keith was completely surrounded by plates upon plates of food, a good portion of which were empty. “I finished translating the book!”

“That is fantastic news!” Allura said, clapping softly.

“Yeah, it is!” Keith said, smiling as Pidge handed him the translated paper. He began flipping through it while everybody gathered around him. “Oh! Right here, look; this is where I am. Week 4: By this time in the Galra’s pregnancy, the Galra will be able to eat twice their weight in food more than five times a day, but most of this energy will go into the quick growth of the baby and very little weight will be added to the figure of the Galra…” Keith’s voice went a little quieter as worry came onto his face. After a moment he handed the paper to Shiro, who read on from where Keith had stopped.

“This is a safety measure to protect Galran Omegas from harm that could arise because of their pregnancy, for from this week until Week 9 the scent of the Galra is stronger and this is the final chance that the ones who want to breed with the Omega will have before the baby is too far developed to kill with their own sperm.” Shiro looked at Keith. “What do they mean by that, Keith?”

“R-Ryner told me when we first started talking about all of this that… Omegas are able to carry the young of most if not all the races in the Galaxy, and to a certain point mating with an Omega, pregnant or not, can help produce their young. Sometimes they’ll have a baby of each race or the stronger young of the two races will kill the other, no matter which is older.” Keith hugged himself.

“That’s… disturbing.” Coran said.

“It’s kind of like lions on Earth.” Matt said. “Though typically the King of a Pride kills the young of another King after it’s born to prove a point…. Killing a baby before that is… rough…”

“Not to mention potentially dangerous…” Frowned Hunk. “Keith is still part human and abuse like that could be rough. I mean… the way that sounds doesn’t exactly sound ‘consensual’ if something like that happens… the emotional trauma alone would cause problems.”

Keith shuddered at the thought. “What else does it say, Shiro?”

“Oh; right, um…” He scanned the page until he found what he was looking for. “‘The scent of the Omega Galra will be stronger depending on the species of the unborn child or the gender of the child. For example, if mated between a Galra Omega and a Justrine Alpha, the resulting scent would draw more attention to them. Or if it’s a Galra Omega and an unborn female Balmaran, the scent will be just as strong. But just as simply, if it’s an unborn Balmaran male the scent will be weaker and almost untraceable unless within twenty feet of the Omega.’ Well, that’s an upside… I think.”

“Well, he mated with Lance, who’s human… as far as we know.” Pidge chuckled. “He could be an alien from planet Dork Fish for all we know, considering how set he was on those mermaids.”

“Hey! They’re hot, okay?! Besides, if I was I would be King of Planet Dork Fish.” Lance said proudly.

“That’s right, and from what I can tell…” Coran suddenly sniffed next to Keith, causing him to blush darkly. “You only smell slightly stronger… though I have to admit you do smell good; you’re simply not someone I would consider mating with.” He said and Keith ducked down.

“Coran, I swear to god if you turn into a stalker I will actually kick your ass.” Keith threatened.

Coran chuckled. “Worry not, Number Four. While the thought of growing the Altean race yet again is intriguing, I believe in love first and wish to find somebody to spend my life with rather than just find somebody to have sexual moments with because I feel the need.”

“That’s really sweet of you, Coran.” Hunk said. “I hope you find your special someone.”

“Speaking of special someones.” Lance said as Shiro handed the stack of papers back to Keith. “We’re only about an hour away from seeing your special someone.” He chuckled, causing Hunk to blush and rub the back of his neck.

“O-oh, please. I-it’s nothing like that. She’s just cute, and cool, and more incredible than anybody I’ve ever met.”

“So, in other words,” Pidge chuckled. “The only person you’ve ever been interested since I met you?”

“Uh… y-y-yeah, I guess.” He chuckled nervously, a blush covering his entire face.

“Too bad that doesn’t mention if the Balmarans are a race that’ll be dangerous to Keith or not.” Matt said. “They look gentle enough, but… you never know.”

“We’ll keep our eyes on him.” Shiro said. “Lance and I will be with him at all times, which I know might be a little frustrating for the more jealous types.” He chuckled at Matt, who blushed. “But it’s to keep him safe and it’s necessary.”

“I really don’t think the Balmarans are like that.” Hunk said softly.

“That’s what we thought about the Arusians, and the second Keith was alone they began pawing at him.” Lance pointed out. “The Balmarans are a lot bigger than them and it’d be much more dangerous for a bunch of them to corner Keith.”

“You’re right.” Hunk frowned.

“Don’t worry, Hunk.” Shiro said. “You can spend as much time with Shay as you want; the rest of us will keep an eye on Keith.”

“Not to mention if I’m in trouble Red’ll come save me.” Keith chuckled. “You guys aren’t the only ones who’ve been super protective of me the past few days.”

“It sounds like a good plan to me.” Allura smiled. “We will make final preparations to land on Balmara.”

Allura and Coran left to head up to the Bridge while Keith looked down at the stack of papers in his hands. He had a little more time before they landed, enough to get some reading done. He needed to know as much of what he was going to go through before it happened, so he knew when it would be time to step down. When that time came Lance would need to drive Red again, and Allura would have to drive Blue.

“You going to be okay, Keith?” Lance asked while Hunk picked up the food that hadn’t been eaten and took them into the kitchen.

“Yeah… I’m going to sit here for a little while longer and read this.” He said. “I should know what’s going to happen to me before we’re forced to experience it firsthand.”

Lance smiled and sat next to him, causing Keith to blush slightly. “I’ll read with you.” He smiled. ‘You’re carrying my baby so I should do whatever I can to help you through all of this.”

“And that is our cue to leave.” Pidge chuckled, pushing everybody else out of the room so it was just the two of them. 

“So…” Lance looked over at the paper. “What happens next?”

“Well, according to this there’s no other big changes until Week 6…” He frowned. “During this time it’ll be decided if the baby will be mainly Galra, or mainly the other race. If the Omega was bred by another Galra, then this will be the time that it’ll be decided if it’ll have a tail in the future or not.”

Lance smiled. “Aww, a tail would be cute. But the baby will be mostly human, so that probably won’t happen.”

“I’m sure we could find them a lion costume or something to wear.” Keith said with a laugh and Lance’s face lit up.

“I. Would. Love. That.”

“Of course you would… Okay, so after Week 9, when the scent finally fades off is when I’ll start developing a baby bump… great.” Keith scrunched his nose at the idea.

“Aww, don’t be like that. You’ll look beautiful.” Lance said, both of them looking at each other for a moment before looking away with a dark blush. “W-what else?”

“Hm… oh! It’ll also decide the gender of the babies… wait, ‘babies’? Like two?” Keith began to flip through the papers. “This is the first thing I’ve heard about multiples.”

“O-oh, about that… um… When Hunk and I were talking to Sal the other day…”


	34. Crystal Flowers

Keith was still in shock by the news that he might be having more than one baby by the time they reached the Balmera, but no matter how hard the team tried to talk to him about it he would just avoid the conversation by ducking down and hiding his face. He kept his head down, but stayed close to the team.

“Shay!” Hunk yelled happily as he ran over, hugging his Balmaran friend who hugged him back, a large smile on her face.

“Oh Hunk, how I've missed you!”

“I’ve missed you too -I mean, we all have b-but, um… I missed you most.” Hunk smiled gently.

Shay looked up slowly, looking at the ship at the rest of the Paladins, who were staying behind. “Is something wrong?”

“Oh. Keith, um… we found out that Keith is going through a ‘mating season’ and we recently found out he was pregnant… we’re worried because of him being an Omega that he may be in danger. We trust all of you, but one of the other planets we’ve been to where we trusted the aliens there, we got there and they tried to attack him.”

“Oh no, that’s terrible. What can I do to help?”

“Well, first of all we have to make sure his scent isn’t going to upset anybody, so, um… yeah, this is the weird part; will you sniff Keith?”

“Of course! Anything to help!” Shay smiled happily, following Hunk onto the ship.

Keith tensed but didn’t move away as Shay began sniffing him softly. “While he does smell good, the only thing I have the urge to do is protect him.” She admitted with a smile. “I can tell he is with child simply from his scent. He will be fine to wander around, and I will keep my eye on him as well.”

Keith relaxed softly. “Thank you.” He said, then quickly walked off of the ship. “I could actually use a little time alone.” He sighed. “I have a little bit I need to think about.”

“Just stay within earshot.” Shiro said. “If you get into trouble we’ll have to be able to hear it.”

“Yes sir.” Keith said, touching his stomach softly before waving and walking off in the direction of some of the bigger crystals.

“I have never met a pregnant Galra before.” Shay said. “Normally the Omegas of most species are kept separated and only are for other Galra to use.”

“What do you mean, Shay?” Allura said softly.

Shay looked up with a soft blush. “O-oh; I-I’m sorry, Princess. I hope I didn’t overstep my bounds.”

“No, not at all… you see, only a few people have been able to provide us with information; the Blade of Marmora are very secretive, even about this. Keith has been trying to get in contact with them for a few days and he has gotten no reply… then the Olkari gave Keith some stuff for the baby and the little bit of information they could, but… from what we’ve heard and what Keith has told us… there’s been nothing about separated Omegas, so please… tell us what you know.” 

“Oh. Very well, then. Galra are typically Alphas, and Omega Galra are very rare and very valuable to both Galra and other species all over the galaxy. I-I don’t know if you know this, but the Omega of the Galra race can carry most species…”

Lance nodded softly. “I heard that one from Keith…”

Shay smiled. “Well, you see, because of their rarity they’re all gathered up and locked on a secure planet where only a few people know where they are and they’re used strictly for breeding. It is how they keep their population up above the rest and Omegas will be traded with the most important groups that they’re in company with, as presents.”

“That is… disturbing.” Coran said while the rest of their friends paled at the news. 

“Yeah… it is, but we understand why they do it after a while. As far as nobody knows that your friend is a Galra Omega you will not have any trouble.” She promised with a smile. “And I know that we here will not tell a soul.”

“Thank you, Shay.” Hunk smiled.

“Anything for a friend. Now, Grandma is preparing some cave stew; we would love to try some of your Earth dishes as well, Hunk.” She said with a gentle blush.

“Okay, I’d love to!”

“I want to study some of these different colored crystals; would that be alright?” Matt asked.

“Yes, just please remember what the Balmara is; do not harm it.”

“I won’t; I will not remove any crystals without Coran or Allura to assist me.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him, Shay, Don’t worry.” Laughed Pidge.

“I guess that leaves you and I to keep an eye on Keith… well, finding Keith first and then going from there.” Lance chuckled softly.

Shiro nodded. “Yeah. Let’s give him ten more minutes then we’ll head in the direction he was in and hopefully find out if he’s okay or not.”

“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Lance asked sadly. “I mean… he was having a hard enough time knowing that he was going to have one baby and then I open my big mouth and tell him all of a sudden that it was even more likely that he was going to have twins or triplets… god, he must be so scared.” 

“Of course he’s scared…” Shiro messed up the white fluff at the front of his head. “He’s never had much of a family… he went from orphanage to orphanage… I met him at about his sixth one… the one before that, though… it was bad. Really bad. They shackled him to the floor and would beat him up whenever he did anything he wasn’t supposed to. It’s one of the reasons he’s so scared of having friends and family now. He never had much of a childhood… I guess he’s afraid that his children will have the same bad luck because of him and he doesn’t want that. He wants to protect them.”

“Do you think that… he’ll be a good parent?”

“The best.” Shiro said. “He may not seem like it, but while we were in the same orphanage he took care of anybody who needed him. He would clean up their cuts, make sure they were fed, and would even give his food away to the kids who were still hungry or were sent to bed without dinner. He hated seeing people get treated unfairly. I know he’s going to be a fantastic parent, but I know that unless we help him he’ll back out before he has the chance.”

Lance smiled. “I’ll try to help him… he and I are a team… we’re going to be parents… we’re going to be a very complicated family.”

“Yeah, but you’re not going to be alone. All of us on this ship will be here for you to help you with whatever you need.” Shiro patted his back. “Come on, let’s go find Keith. I’m sure that knowing him he probably found himself in some kind of situation that he could use help getting out of.”

Lance laughed. “Yeah, no kidding. I swear he’s a beacon for danger.”

 

Shiro and Lance walked along, passing by the larger crystals towards one of the mines that had since begun to heal since the Galra had left the planet, much like most places on the planet. They looked around, stopping only when they found Keith.

He was sitting cross-legged in the dirt, a blush on his face. He was surrounded by both elderly Balmarans and young Balmaran children that were making him flower crowns out of the crystal flowers that were in bloom around ponds around the planet. The crystals were soft purple and bright blue with stems of crystal that were soft green in color. They were all talking to him, asking him questions, and making him chuckle softly. After a while Keith looked up and spotted his friends; he was blushing darkly and after a moment he mouthed:

Help me.

Lance began to laugh while Shiro walked over and sat down with them, studying the Balmarans’ movements for a while before he began copying them and began making his own crystal flower crowns.

“So, what are we doing?” Chuckled Shiro.

“This is not helping.” Keith grumbled. “I have enough crystals on me to power a small spaceship!”

“And you look beautiful.” Lance said softly, causing Keith to blush darker. He looked down at his lap, his tail swaying side to side nervously. “I want to make some.” He smiled, sitting down and smiling as the Balmarans taught him how to make them. Eventually Shiro and Lance were given flower crowns until all of them were covered from head to toe in crystal flowers.


	35. The Power of Balmera

That night they had a feast, one that Keith actually enjoyed despite the others not being so into it. The cave stew that Shay’s Grandmother made, while gross to everybody else, Keith couldn’t get enough of. He had already had two bowls of it when Lance handed him his stew.

“Thanks!” Keith blushed softly.

“Not even my grandchildren love my cooking this much.” Shay’s grandmother said. “It is very nice to be appreciated.”

“It must be because of my pregnancy.” Keith said softly. “This is one of the only things that actually smells and tastes good at the same time… it’s incredible.”

“Well then, please; help yourself! I will be sure to make more for your trip.”

Keith smiled, then frowned when he looked down again. There was a soft glow coming from around him. “W-wait, what’s going on?”

“I don’t believe it.” Shay said. “The Balmara is reacting to you.”

“B-but why? It hasn’t before.” Keith said, suddenly feeling uncomfortable again.

“Because you are with child.” Grandma said with a smile. “Do not worry; the Balmara are known for providing strength and power to the unborn that will affect them late into life.”

“So, like, will they end up with superpowers or something?” Lance said with a big grin.

“Not quite.” Coran said. “Back when my Queen was pregnant with Allura they made it a point to visit as many Balmara as they could to assure that their child was born healthy, not to mention it helped the birth be easier on the mother and allowed her to heal faster. Perhaps staying as long as possible would be something we should consider.” 

Keith put his hand on his stomach as the baby began moving yet again, kicking him in the stomach. “Ow! Brat.” He growled. “I’m trying to eat; behave.”

“Are they kicking?” Hunk asked happily.

“Unfortunately.” He mumbled, moving his hand so Hunk could touch. The large man was clearly timid about touching it, but when he did his face lit up. “Woah, that’s so cool.”

The others moved closer as though wanting to touch too, but unfortunately it stopped before the next one could touch it.

“Not really… it does it suddenly and it feels really weird. It was kinda cool the first few times but now I’m just getting annoyed from it…” Keith took a few more bites of his stew.

“So do you know the gender of your young?” Rax asked.

“No, not yet. Not until Week 9 or so…” Keith said softly.

“Are you hoping for specific genders?” Grandmother asked.

“I-I know the majority of the ship wants a girl.” Keith said. “But… I haven’t given it much thought… so long as they’re happy and healthy they can be whatever they want to be.”

“You are worried about what kind of parent you will be.” Grandmother said. “I understand; all first-time parents understand… though some understand more than the others. I wish to make you something for the child; please consider being our guests for a few days until I can finish it.”

“We don’t want to put you out…” Allura said softly.

“We would love to have you!” Shay said happily. “You guys can continue your studies, we can spend time with Hunk, and Keith can take in the properties of the Balmara.”

Allura and Shiro looked at each other before Shiro smiled back at the Balmarans.

“We would love to; thank you.”

 

The next day Rax lead Keith away from the majority of the group to a crystal-surrounded pond. Keith was a little nervous about being alone with somebody as big as Rax, but he knew that if something was going on his friends would come looking for him.

“What are we doing here?” Keith asked.

“Shay and Grandmother told me to bring you here so that you may enjoy the properties that this lake provides.”

“Properties? What kind of properties?”

“As was mentioned last night, this planet and the crystals can make the growth of the child better as well as prepare the one who gives birth for what is going to happen. Not to mention one of your friends mentioned that you were having a hard time and that some alone time would help you figure things out; ponds like these are perfect for things such as that.”

“Oh… um… t-thank you.” Keith said softly.

Rax nodded. “Take your time; you will be safe here.” He said, then walked away, leaving Keith alone.

Keith stood there for a moment before he pulled off his boots and put his feet into the water, looking at the reflective surface. It was beautiful, and seeing his reflection helped him relax as he examined himself. He could feel himself being pulled in by the mirror-like surface. His heartbeat slowed down to a calming, resting beat, his breathing became smooth, and his eyes became heavy.

He felt as though he was being pulled out of his body as the reflection in the pool began to warp and change until the image of his family's cabin could be seen. There was something different about it; the more he looked at it the more the building seemed to change and began to look lived in.

After a long moment he could feel the warm Arizona air brushing his face and the feeling the warm water once had was replaced by him feeling as though he was once again standing on the hard surface.

“Keith!” Lance ran over, wearing a tank top and shorts, his shoulders softly burned from the hot Arizona sun. “There you are. Come on, the moving van will be here any minute; what are you doing way out here?”

Keith blinked for a few moments as he looked around. Wasn’t he just on the Balmara? How did he get back home? “Um… I'm not sure.” He said with a laugh.

Lance walked over. He seemed to have gotten taller, but that wasn’t what surprised Keith. What surprised him was when Lance suddenly pushed his lips against his. Keith moaned softly, tensing up before he kissed Lance back, his ears going down softly as he wrapped his arms around Lance, a blush covering his face. They were enjoying their moment before the sound of a baby crying in the distance broke them apart.

Lance groaned softly but laughed as he pulled away. “Come on, the baby is crying.”

“Baby?”

“Yeah; you know, our baby? 6 pounds 8 ounce ball of terror?” Lance laughed. “What’s gotten into you today; are you feeling okay?” Lance touched his forehead. “Hm… you’re not running a fever but we should get you out of the sun and get you some water. I’ll call my parents and make sure that they have some soup and crackers for when we get there.”

“Right… um… Why are we going to see your parents?”

“It’s on the way to the new place…” Lance said, leading him towards the cabin. “Keith, are you sure you’re okay?”

“Ye-yeah! I-I’m good; I’m fine!” Keith smiled, his tail wrapping around his legs.

“Keith, I know you like it here but we have to protect you and the baby… You may look more human than you did when you had him, but…”

“Him?”

“Yeah; you know, Apollo? Our son?”

“R-right…” Keith said, then blushed and looked down. A boy? They had a boy? Lance had wanted a girl. “Sorry, I guess I’m really out of it.”

“We’re moving, so yeah; you have the right to be a little out of it, Keith.” Lance said. “I’ll drive the first part of the trip so you and Apollo can sleep.” He kissed Keith’s cheek. “I love you, Keith.”

“You… r-really?” Keith blushed. “I-I-I love you too, Lance.”

“You’re so cute.” Lance said, messing up Keith’s black hair.


	36. "Sweet" Dreams

Looking down at the crib was startling and unnerving for Keith; the baby that was in the crib didn’t have a face and was looking more and more terrifying the longer Keith looked at him. The way Lance was talking to the bundle it was like he was seeing a face… so why couldn’t Keith? Why couldn’t Keith see the baby’s face?

“Keith, are you alright? Do you want to put him in the car seat?” Lance asked and Keith took a step back.

“U-u-um… n-no, thanks… sorry, I’m just… um… Lance, how long have we been home; back on Earth?”

“A few months...actually it’s closer to a year now. Why?”

“Just… what happened to the others? Allura, Coran, Shiro? W-where are they?”

Lance picked the baby up and began to pat him on the back. “Well… Allura and Coran are running the Galaxy Protection Initiate, Shiro and Matt are married and teaching classes at the Garrison, Hunk is living on the Balmara with Shay, and Pidge is at home with her Mom and Dad doing all she can to help relax the tension about Voltron being here on Earth.”

“The Lions… are here?”

“Yeah. Red and Blue are at the new house in the bunker underground. Keith… what’s wrong? Why are you acting so weird?”

Keith looked down at his hands. No, this didn’t feel right; in fact it felt really, really wrong. This was how he had always wanted it to happen. Everybody to do whatever they wanted, and for him to end up either living with Lance or living with Shiro. With Shiro in love with Matt though, he didn’t want to get in the way. Everything was perfect… too perfect.

“This… doesn’t feel right…” Keith said, then a shout came from outside the cabin.

“Keith! Hey, Keith!” It sounded like Lance's voice, and when he looked from the door to where Lance had just been standing with the baby, there was nobody there. Lance, the crib, and the baby were gone.

The cabin was once again dusty and cold, and he felt alone.

“Keith! Wake up!”

“W-what?” Keith spun around, walking to the door. The moment he opened it, he snapped awake.

He was still sitting at the Balmaran pool, staring at his reflection, and when he looked up again Lance was kneeling next to him. He seemed a little worried. Keith didn’t understand for a long moment why he looked so worried until he felt the tears rolling down his face.

“O-oh. I, um… I’m okay…” Keith said, looking around. The planet had gotten really warm and really bright; it was likely around noon by now. He rubbed at his eyes. “What, um… w-what happened?”

“I was about to ask you the same thing; are you okay?”

“Yeah, um… I’m okay. I just… fell asleep, I think?”

“Come on, let’s get you back to the ship. We should have Coran and the others look at you.” Lance said, grabbing Keith under his arms as he helped him to his feet, rubbing his back. “How are you feeling? Lightheaded? Sick? Something wrong?”

“I’m fine…” Keith rubbed his eyes, that dream continuing to ripple through his head as his heart pounded fearfully. “Lance… now that you know that you’re going to be a parent… what do you want in life? I mean… I-I don’t- what I mean is that I didn’t…” He sighed. “I hope that because I’m pregnant that it’s not stopping you from doing what you want…”

Lance stopped. “Are you kidding me?!” He asked, taking Keith’s shoulders. “Ever since I was little I’ve wanted to be a dad! I mean, when I wasn’t playing football with my brothers I was playing house with my sisters…” A blush appeared on his cheeks. “During the summer, when I knew nobody was watching I would sneak out my sister’s Cabbage Patch Kid Doll and play with them in the treehouse out back.”

Keith smirked softly. “You played with dolls?”

“S-shut up.” Lance looked away. “Okay, but my point is that this hasn’t changed my plans at all; in fact this just moved it forward. I hope that… you and I will be able to get a house on Earth with our three kids, a large yard, a dog and a white picket fence.”

“T-three kids?! That’s how many there are?!” He asked, touching his stomach fearfully.

“No… I mean, I don’t know.” Lance laughed. “That’s just how many I want altogether; I have no idea how many you’re currently carrying… but my point is… I really do want to fall in love with you and if I can do that, then I want to spend my life with you.”

Keith looked down for a moment before he said, “I-I’d like that… but I want a cat.”

“No way; cats shed and claw up furniture.” Laughed Lance as they walked towards the ship, their hands brushing slightly as they walked.

“And dogs chew up tables and bark all night.” They kept laughing as they went towards the ship, careful to keep an eye on one another.

 

“As far as I can tell, you had a strange reaction to the pond.” Coran said as Keith rubbed his eyes softly, trying to get rid of the effects of the light the Altean had just been shining in his eyes. “I have heard of rare reactions such as this where people will fall into a dream-like state. You’re lucky Lance found you when he did; the longer you were in this sleep, the more likely it would have been that your coma would have become permanent.”

“I have not heard of such a reaction… perhaps Grandmother would know. We have not seen this reaction in anyone before or we would have made sure to warn you.” Shay said, seeming worried that Keith might be hurt.

“I-I’ll be fine.” Keith smiled.

“You should warn any other visitors that come and try to use the pools, though. Just because it’s rare doesn’t mean it’s not impossible…” Shiro said, his arms crossed.

“Yes, we shall.” Shay promised. “We would not want this happening to someone else and have them drown in the pools.”

Keith shivered at the idea.

“So you said you had a dream, and that you were back on Earth… but what kind of details are you leaving out?” Pidge asked. “You looked really freaked out when you walked in.”

“I… you know what… it’s nothing.” He laughed softly. “Just more of a nightmare than I was expecting.”

“Perhaps it showed you something in your future?” Shay piped up. “I do not know exactly what you saw, but the Balmara speaks to us. Perhaps it spoke to you. I will speak with Grandmother to see what happened to you, if she knows. Please excuse me.” Shay then left the room, leaving the others to talk among themselves.

Keith frowned. “I hope not… I really, really hope not…” Keith ran his fingers through his hair, pushing the long strands out of his face before he pulled his legs up against his chest and he put his forehead on his knees.

“Was it really that bad?” Hunk asked with a worried frown.

“No… I guess… maybe… I don’t know.” He sighed. “We were back on Earth, most of us. Allura and Coran were working on spreading peace all over the universe and the rest of us had gone our separate ways. Lance, the baby, and I were in Arizona… but we were moving somewhere. I looked at the baby; it was a boy and his name was Apollo… but his face… h-he didn’t have a face…”

“Well, you are part alien; maybe it won’t have a face. Like that one general Lotor has.”

“Hey! It’s my kid; it’s gonna have the best-looking face you’ve ever seen!”

Keith was pale now as closed his eyes. “I just want them to be healthy… to be normal… to be happy and have friends… I want him to have a better life than I ever did. I want to be able to give them that…”

“Keith, the probability of your child not having a face is quite impossible; both you and Lance have faces, as do the Galra. And… I may not know anything about your past on your homeworld, but I do know you. You will be an amazing father to your child, perhaps as good as my father was to me. Besides, we are all here to support you; you won’t be alone in doing this.” Allura smiled softly. “I look forward to dressing them up; I know of a beautiful Altean dress I could put on them.”

“A dress?” Lance said. “Um, Keith said it was a boy in his dream; why would we put him in a dress?”

“On Altea, all children wore dresses until they were 6, depending on their parents’ stand on the situation.” Coran said. “Myself included; do you mean that you don’t have similar traditions?”

Shiro and Keith looked at each other for a moment.

“Well, at the orphanage most of us wore overalls.” Keith admitted, his ears down softly.

“What are ‘overalls’?” Allura asked, tilting her head.

“They’re the same material as Lance’s pants, but they have fabric in front and straps that go over the shoulders and connects in the back.” Pidge explained, adjusting her glasses. “They cover a lot of skin, so they’re called coveralls. Or overalls; it depends on where you were raised.”

“I think they’re cute.” Matt said. “Katie looked adorable; she had some overalls with kitty cats on the chest and a she would always wear a tutu over the hips.” Pidge blushed and shoved him.

“Shut up, we don’t talk about that! Besides, it’s not like you didn’t like wearing my tutus, too! And Mom’s dresses!”

Matt let out an unintelligible squeak and his face turned crimson.

“Really?” Shiro said with a smirk, making Matt turn around quickly.

“We were talking about baby clothes!” He said, rather loudly.

“I already have a few.” Keith said, then blushed. “The Olkari gave me a care package when I left; it had baby clothes, blankets, the baby book and a-” He stopped himself from saying the final thing and coughed loudly. “Tickle in the throat.”

“Funny, I didn’t think you could put those in a box.” Pidge teased with a grin.

“Well… they, um… y-yeah; anyways, I feel fine. But I’m hungry.” Keith got up, rubbing his stomach slightly. “I feel like I haven’t eaten in forever.”

“Well, you have; you ate less than four hours ago.” Matt pointed out.

“Well, I have a baby inside me that’s hungry. I want pickles and ice cream…”

“Ew. Glad I’m not the one with pregnancy cravings.” Pidge crinkled her nose before adjusting her glasses. “Maybe there’s some more of that cave soup somewhere.”

“Yes, there is. I made sure to grab plenty from last night. Come on, Keith; I’ll warm it up for you.” Hunk offered with a smile, leading him towards the kitchen.


	37. Kicks

The next three days were hard for Keith. Every time he fell asleep he would see that faceless infant in his dreams and he would become extremely fearful. Because of that he had been avoiding sleeping; something he knew wasn’t good for him or the baby, but at this point anything was better than how he felt during that dream. Of course, he couldn’t tell his team he had been struggling with sleeping; they didn’t need to worry about him anymore than they already did.

Keith swung his sword with a yell, slicing the training bot across the chest and knocking it backwards before it fell to the ground in a crumpled-up heap of iron and steel. Keith panted softly, sweat dripping down his forehead. He was exhausted from not sleeping and his training, and his hands and legs were shaking with exhaustion as he did all he could to keep himself from falling down.

He put his sword away before rubbing his eyes sleepily. His body craved sleep, but every inch of him was terrified to close his eyes. He wanted a healthy baby… he wanted a baby that he could see smile and teach to talk; a baby that looked beautiful like Lance… seeing a baby without a face was terrifying. A stomach growl on top of the craving for more Cave Soup convinced him to leave the training deck and head towards the kitchen.

Hunk had left earlier that morning to spend time with Shay; something he had been doing more and more of lately, only proving the fact that Hunk really did like the alien female. Keith really hoped that Hunk didn’t get his heart broken, but part of him guessed that this fear for his friend was coming from the fact that he himself still felt completely heartbroken from breaking up with Lance.

He walked into the kitchen, letting out a yelp of pain as his hip slammed against the edge of the table. He was too tired; now he wasn’t paying attention to everything around him. He was going to get into serious trouble if this kept up. Keith growled softly, walking painfully over to the fridge as he grabbed a bowl of cold soup and proceeded to warm it up.

“Hey, Keith.” Lance said as he walked in, giving Keith a worried smile. “You look like shit; you feeling okay?”

“I just haven’t been sleeping well; I’ll be fine.” He said with a soft sigh, rubbing his eyes again. “I just need some food.”

Lance frowned, grabbing Keith and suddenly picking him up, causing Keith to gasp in surprise and cling to the blue-eyed boy.

“W-w-what are you doing?! Y-you’re going to drop me!”

“I will not; calm down.” Lance said with a sigh as he carried Keith out of the room and into what served as a living room. Lance then laid Keith down and sat next to his head, putting Keith’s head on his thigh. 

Keith was tense for a moment before a cool hand began running through his hair and between his ears. Keith relaxed before letting out a soft purr, closing his eyes. It was so nice; why was so this nice? 

“What are you doin’?” Keith asked, not liking how tired his voice suddenly sounded.

“Helping you sleep. You need to rest and if that means that I sit here the entire time and play with your hair, then so be it.”

Keith grunted weakly. He wanted to say that he didn’t need help falling asleep, but seeing how quickly Lance was putting him to sleep, that seemed like a pointless argument. His fingers continued running through Keith’s hair for a long moment, and just when he felt himself drifting further off a hard kick came to his stomach.

His eyes snapped open and he snatched Lance’s wrist suddenly, pulling his hand to his stomach where the kicking was coming from. Lance looked confused but said nothing until the next kick came, this time hitting Lance’s palm. Lance’s blue eyes went wide as his face lit up, making him look much younger than he actually was.

“Is that-”

“Yeah.” Keith smiled softly. “That’s your baby. It proves that there’s at least one in there.”

“Wow… this suddenly feels ten times more real.” Lance said.

“A-are you okay?”

“Better than okay.” Lance bent forward, kissing Keith’s forehead and making him blush. He hated these mixed signals, but he loved the soft kisses too much to say anything. “This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Keith smiled. “Y-yeah… I, um… I’m glad you feel that way… I’m still not so sure how I feel about it.”

Lance’s smile faded. “Your dream… the one you had under the effect of that Balmaran pool… are you still having it?” Keith could feel himself pale at the question. “Is that why you haven’t been sleeping?”

“Yeah… I just want them to be healthy… th-they can’t be healthy if they don’t have a face.”

“Keith… even Lotor’s general had a mouth and she’s full alien; you’re only, at most, half-alien, which means our kids will only be one-fourth alien…. If I’m doing my math right; I mean, but… what I’m saying is, the worst thing that the baby will have is my ADHD or your anger issues. They’ll be fine, and if they’re not then we’ll work through it together. Okay? So please, try to rest.” Lance began running his fingers through Keith’s hair again. “I’ll be here when you wake up, and if you want to we can talk about it more then.”  
Keith blinked softly, his eyes slowly shutting again. “Okay… goodnight…”

“Goodnight, buddy.”

 

Keith hummed softly, soft singing slowly bringing him out of his thankfully dreamless sleep. The voice was soft and familiar, but also loud enough to catch his attention. It was an older sound, another one Keith had only heard a few times since his father vanished.

It sounded like Lance was singing the second verse of the song as he softly rubbed Keith’s stomach. It was a little bit embarrassing for Keith but it was nice to know he was still there as he had promised; because of that he didn’t care that he was being touched.

“You’ve got, the most unbelievable blue eyes I’ve ever seen. You’ve got me almost melting away.” Keith softly opened his eyes, looking at Lance, whose eyes were closed as well while he continued singing. “As we lay there under blue sky with pure white stars, exotic sweetness, a magical time. Say it, say it again.” Lance said and this time Keith softly began singing with him.

“I love you always forever, near and far closer together, everywhere I will be with you, everything I will do for you.” Keith blinked awake a little more before smiling sleepily up at Lance.

“Good morning…”

“H-hey, Keith; how did you sleep?” Lance asked, a blush dusting his cheeks.

“Good.” Keith slowly sat up, his hair falling in his face as he rubbed his nose. “I’m still really hungry, though.”

“Right, sorry about that, but… I mean, and don’t take this out of proportion, but… you eat a lot but you hardly sleep, so I figured that getting you to fall asleep as soon as possible took priority.”

Keith laughed softly. “Well, now you owe me lunch. Feed me.”

Lance chuckled. “Okay, okay. Let’s go.” Lance climbed off the couch before helping Keith to his feet, then towards the dining hall. “The Balmarans are coming in to have dinner with us and give you their gift, so we should head there and see if they need help setting up. I even think Hunk said that he found a way to make rolls like the ones we had on Earth.”

Keith’s stomach growled. “Rolls sound incredible; ooh, and Cheetos sound great too… with pickles. You know, I know that this should sound disgusting but they sound incredible.” Keith’s tail wrapped around his stomach as a purr rippled through his chest.

“You’re right; it sounds terrible.” Chuckled Lance as they walked into the dining room where Hunk, Shiro, Pidge, Matt, and Coran were setting up the table and laying out food for the guests that would soon be coming to eat with them.

“Morning, Starshine.” Shiro said, walking over before messing up Keith’s hair, causing the Galra to blush slightly. “Did you get some sleep?”

Keith nodded slowly. “Y-y-yeah. Um, I feel a little better.” He cleared his throat before pushing his hair out of his face. “Anything I can do to help?”

“We’re just about done but we’re all going to have to eat in our Paladin armor, so you guys should go get dressed and we’ll greet our guests when they come in.” Shiro crossed his arms. “The armor seems to be fitting you okay so far, but if it starts getting too tight we’ll figure it out.” He promised.

“R-right. Thank you, Shiro.”


	38. Gift

The dinner was not only incredible in taste but was also more like the dinners that Keith had at the orphanages on Earth. It was loud, crazy, and full of laughter. At the end of the dinner, Grandmother walked over to Keith and put a crudely wrapped box on the table in front of him.

“Hunk told us that on Earth you bundle gifts like this.” She said. “He helped us wrap it, but not even he knows what it is.”

“They were very secretive.” Giggled Hunk.

“T-thank you.” Keith said with a blush as he began to unwrap the box and open it. Inside was a crystal mobile, and as Keith picked it up smaller crystals spilled down and glittered in the light. The crystal hoop was a pale blue, and the rest of the crystals were red, blue, and purple.

“Oh my goodness, that is beautiful!” Allura smiled, her hands together.

Keith stared at it, his eyes wide and full of wonder. It was easily the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his entire life, though it had nothing on laying on the cabin roof and looking up at the Milky Way above him. “T-thank you.” Keith said, tears forming and dripping down his cheeks.

“K-Keith, what’s wrong?” Hunk asked.

“I’m just… so happy.” He said. “The baby… or babies… w-well, they’re not even born yet and already they have more people who care for them than I’ve had in my entire life. I-it means so much to me that you’re all here… that you all care for them… I love it so much. Thank you. Thank all of you.”

“Awwww.” Hunk walked over, giving Keith a bear hug and after a moment Shay copied him and hugged Keith from the other side. Keith hiccuped and kept crying, rubbing his eyes as he tried to keep himself quiet.

“I do not understand.” Rax said. “Do you Earthlings not have ‘families’? Why is this such a big deal for the red one?”

“He’s an Orphan.” Shiro said after a long moment.

“Orphan?” Grandmother said, sounding rather sad. “Whatever does that mean?”

“An Orphan means that I don’t have a family.” Keith said after a moment. “I-I never met my mother and my father vanished when I was 6 years old. I never found out what happened to him and after that… I was forced into other homes… but none of them really made me feel like I had a ‘family’...” Hunk and Shay let go of Keith and sat back down. Keith then ran his fingers over the crystal mobile. “S-sorry, this was supposed to be a good thing.” He said. “I hate the fact that I can’t keep my emotions in check.”

“You’re pregnant, Keith.” Laughed Matt. “If you were in control of your emotions, it would be much more worrying.”

“R-right…” Keith hiccuped softly. “Thank you all again.”

 

Three days later they were leaving the Balmara and getting ready to spend an unknown amount of time in space again. Their friends were safe and the next step was to continue spreading peace to the surrounding planets. Pregnant or not, they had to keep working, and after what felt like ages of trying to convince his friends of that they finally decided to listen, though Keith guessed they would still be way too overprotective of him.

It was also during this time that Keith had begun to ‘nest’. It was week four, and apparently that was an important part of his pregnancy that was never mentioned in the book. He had gathered all the possible spare blankets into his room on his bed in a big pile, much like he had in Lance’s room but this was bigger, and while it went over him like a cave it was literally like a bird nest at the bottom. There was enough space in the gap for him to completely vanish in the blanket as well as create a miniature nest for the baby or babies when they finally came.

Lance and the others had already started calling it a Pillow Fort, and while Keith didn’t know what that was, he could guess.

“Keith, hey, get up.” Lance said, peeking into the mouth of the cave. Keith looked up at him, a dazed look on his face. He let out a purr before leaning forward and kissing Lance softly on the nose before laying back down on the bed with a big yawn. Lance blushed, closing the mouth of the cave. “Nope. Not today. SHIRO! YOU GET TO WAKE HIM UP!” Lance yelled as he walked out into the hallway.

Lance leaned against the wall, his face red and heart racing. Keith couldn’t keep looking that cute; it was becoming harder and harder to ignore that he had feelings for the Galra. The fact that he knew that hardly changed anything, though; he was still scared. The last thing he wanted was to get into something he wasn’t ready for. Being a dad was already a larger step than he felt ready to take… though he felt he was running out of lies to tell himself.

“Lance, I heard you yelling; is everything okay?” Pidge asked as she jogged over.

“Yeah; Keith is, um… not waking up for me.” Lance said and Pidge frowned. Lance then sighed. “He’s really cute, Pidge… I don’t like that I like him this much…”

“What do you mean?”

“I just mean- Ugh, I don’t even know anymore. I don’t know why I ever wanted to break up… but at the same time I don’t know if this is just some effect his ‘mating season’ is having on me. There’s no proof that says it’s not and… it’s scary. If his state is just putting a spell on me, I don’t want it to hurt him or me in the future. Keith deserves somebody who will stay by his side all the time and if… if I’m wrong about this and I leave him again… I just…”

“You don’t want him to feel left behind or forgotten.” Pidge guessed and Lance nodded.

“Too many people have walked in and out of his life; he’s been far too hurt and I refuse to be the next person who hurts him.”

Pidge smiled. “You know, when you put it like that you sound like the most responsible person I’ve ever met. Don’t worry; I’ll wake up Keith. You should go get his food ready; chances are he’ll be hungry when he finally gets up.”

“You’re right; thank you Pidge.” Lance smiled, messing up Pidge’s hair as he walked past her.

Lance walked into the kitchen, where Hunk was already making breakfast for the entire ship. From the smell it was pancakes, or at least space’s equivalent to them. He had made miniature pancakes for the mice, who were happily eating them while he added to the crazy pile of pancakes that were already on the plate next to him. Since Keith’s pregnancy got into such a big swing like this they had to make almost twice as much food, though Hunk never really seemed to mind.

“Hey, Hunk.” Lance said. “Do you need help?”

“Sure! Can you take these plates to the dining room and put them on the table?”

Lance nodded, picking up the emptier of the two plates and carrying it into the dining room, putting it on the table with a heavy sigh. He couldn’t get Keith of his head since this morning, and what just happened with him only made it harder to focus on anything else.

Lance walked back into the kitchen, grabbing the other plate as Hunk put the final pancake on it.

“You okay, Lance?” Hunk wondered.

“Y-yeah, I’m fine.” He said. “Just thinking a little too much, is all. Don’t worry.” 

“Alright. Well, I’m here to talk if you need me, man.” Hunk smiled, watching Lance walk out of the room before following him with the plates and sporks they would use to eat.

“Food.” Keith yawned, walking in. He had begun to get into the habit of walking around without a shirt and only in his pajama bottoms during the morning, and often complained that his clothes were ‘itchy’ on his fur. They didn’t question it too much, though today it was a little more frustrating for Lance to see his fur fluffed up from sleep. “It smells really good…”

Hunk laughed. “Come and get some, Sleeping Beauty.”

“A-are you sure?” Keith’s ears went down. “I-I feel like I’ve been eating way too much lately… I-I don’t want to take food away from anybody else.”

“Awww, is somebody feeling self-conscious today?” Hunk said, messing up his hair.

“N-no! I-I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Keith crossed his arms and looked away, his tail swishing from side to side.

“Of course you don’t.” Pidge laughed.

“Don’t worry, Keith; we all have those days.” Lance promised. “But you should just know that… I-I think you look great today.”

Keith blushed, looking away. “T-th-thank you, Lance. I-I appreciate it.”

“Y-y-yeah, no problem. Anyways, come on; let’s eat. Shiro, Allura, Matt, and Coran will be joining us in a little while.”


	39. Danger in the Dark

“This place is really pretty.” Keith said as they walked along the surface of a new planet. From what they could tell, there was plenty of life on the planet but all of them were animals. It had already been a week since they left Balmara, and seeing how Keith was nearing his last week of real ‘danger’, they were letting him wander and explore a little more; though that didn’t mean he was alone on this planet. Pidge and Shiro were with him wandering around, while the others took samples of the water, ground, trees, and collected data on the planet.

“Yeah, almost feels like we’re back on Earth.” Pidge said. “Granted, I spent most of my time on the computer in my room or playing video games but… I really think that would change when we get back.” She admitted. “You never really appreciate what you have until it’s gone.”

Shiro smiled. “Trust me, I get it. I thought about that a lot while I was a prisoner, but I think I’ll be fine so long as I’m with my family.”

A sudden shadow running across the trail caught Keith’s attention. It looked almost like a really short person. His ears perked up and without a second thought he chased after it.

“Keith!” Shiro yelled, but Keith ignored him as he dove through trees, jumped over logs, and ducked under the low branches. He often forgot just how much faster he was in this Galra form, and by the time he realized he could no longer hear Shiro, he was already much further than he expected but still couldn’t find the shape he had been chasing.  
Keith slid to a stop, panting as he looked around slowly. He growled; he was surrounded by really tall and thin trees that made his skin crawl. The shapes of them were a lot like the shape he had seen, but these were much taller. Instinctively he reached for his bayard, forming the sword.

“Keith, where are you?” Pidge’s voice came over the com, but it was full of static and hard to understand. Not to mention it was only distracting him and making it hard for him to hear any movement that could be around him.

Which is when he made his next mistake, and turned off the communicator in his helmet. 

Despite the sounds he had heard a little while ago while walking with Pidge and Shiro, this area of the forest seemed deafeningly silent. A tingle ran up his spine as he felt something slide around his ankle. He looked down, jumping when he saw a wooden root wrapping around it. He sliced the root with his sword, freeing himself as he stumbled away from the now flailing root that seemed to be bleeding red-orange sap.

Keith’s heart began to race as he got ready to fight anything that came at him, though he was surprised when the attack came from underground, shooting straight up as it knocked his helmet off of his head and knocked him off of his feet. Keith let out a cry of pain, his shoulder slamming against a rock.

He gasped in pain, looking around in surprise and shock as the thin trees began slowly approaching him.

“You’ve got to be kidding me…” Keith whimpered, realizing what was happening. “But you’re fucking trees!” He yelled, rolling away as one of their branch-like hands shot out at him, only missing him by a few inches. Keith got to his feet, hating how sluggish he was suddenly beginning to feel… He should have saved some of his energy.

One of the trees walked towards him, reaching for him, encouraging Keith to swing his sword as he sliced them across the chest. The tree made a low screeching sound that echoed and seemed to further anger the surrounding trees. He was outnumbered and the more sap his sword got on it, the heavier it was getting.

He swung at the next closest tree, though this time the sword got stuck in the tree’s chest. Keith struggled and tugged on it, doing all he could to free the sword but wasn’t able to before his wrists were grabbed by a tree behind him and he was lifted into the air.

“Let me go, you stupid freaking-” Keith began, then gasped as roots began to wrap around his chest and legs as they began to pull his armor and rip the spandex under it. “N-no, stop it!” He tried to kick, feeling tears forming as he did his best to break free. He couldn’t reach his Galra blade that was on his belt, couldn’t get his sword, and now he couldn’t call for help. At least not with his communicator. “Shiro! Help!” He yelled, then whimpered as a root wrapped around his head and around his mouth, muffling him.

The boots of his armor and the chest plate fell to the ground, and just when the roots began to tug at his belt a familiar explosion could be heard while a laser bullet shot through the center of one of the trees. Keith grunted and continued to struggle, looking towards the sound, his eyes landing on Lance who was crouched down and aiming his weapon again while Hunk charged right towards the trees.

“Let him go!” Hunk yelled, firing off his gun and hitting the tree that was holding his wrists, officially dropping Keith onto the ground, though the pain in his head was nothing compared to the fear that was rushing through him still. 

Lance’s next shot took out the tree that had Keith’s sword. “Keith! Come on; get out of there!”

Keith sniffled, getting to his feet and running to gather his sword and helmet before rushing towards Lance and hiding behind him. “H-how did you find me?”

“Pidge put a tracker in the suits… plus, we could hear you yelling.” Lance said, shooting at another one of the trees. “Luckily we were already looking for you… I had a feeling something bad was going to happen.”

Keith put his head against Lance’s back as he let out a choked sob. “I was so scared.” Keith said, looking up as the fighting got more violent. Pidge and Shiro had found them and were now helping take out the trees.

Lance, seeming to know the situation was under control, let his gun and bayard vanish before he turned and hugged Keith, holding him tightly while running his fingers through Keith’s hair. “It’s okay… I’m here… you’re safe.” 

Lance ran his hands up and down Keith’s back protectively, letting the older teen cry against his shoulder. Keith was trembling violently and looked only a few seconds away from throwing up or passing out.

“What happened?” Shiro asked as they walked over, both him and Pidge covered in sap. “Is everybody okay?”

“Those tree things…” Hunk began. “They were… they were going to…” Hunk couldn’t even say the word, but Shiro understood what he was trying to say.

“Keith, are you okay?”

Keith wanted to say he was, but he couldn’t speak, and now the weight of what could have happened was really beginning to hit him. It was bad enough that he was almost sexually assaulted by a group of trees, which would have hurt him… but he could have gotten the baby killed. His actions could have ruined his life but could have ruined everybody else’s as well.

Keith hiccuped, pushing Lance away as he threw up into the nearest bush, tears streaking his face. He should have been paying more attention, he should have made sure that the others were with him. He should have been stronger! He shouldn’t have-

He could feel it becoming harder to breathe now; he was beginning to panic. Everything felt wrong. His clothes were too tight, too restricting; he felt trapped. It felt like there were hands around his neck cutting off his air; his head was throbbing, and his stomach was tight. He had only felt this feeling a few times before, but he knew what it was and he needed to calm down.

He couldn’t have a panic attack. Not here. Not now. Not in front of his team.

“We need to get him to the ship.” Hunk said and Shiro walked over, touching Keith’s shoulder.

Keith flinched away, but looked up.

“Keith, can you walk?”

“I-I-I…” Talking was next to impossible so he could only assume that walking would be out of the question, so instead of trying to talk himself out of the situation he just shook his head.

“Okay. I’m going to carry you; is that alright?”

Keith gulped but nodded, letting himself be picked up by the leader who began to carry him bridal-style.

“I’ve got you, buddy; just focus on your breathing. Okay? Don’t let this anxiety control you.”

Keith closed his eyes, putting his hand on his stomach as the baby began to kick, as though checking to see if Keith was okay. Keith sucked in a breath, then let it out. He hated being touched during these types of attacks, but Shiro had been the only person around during his previous attack, which is why he could only guess that was why his touch wasn’t as nerve-wracking as they had been previously.

“What happened; why did you all just take off?” Allura asked, then frowned when she saw the state was Keith in. Hunk was carrying the armor that had been pulled off and Shiro was carrying Keith as he continued to cry, but now it was a silent cry. “What in the world happened?”

“I-I got cocky…” Keith said, hoping that nobody would get in trouble. “Took off when I shouldn’t have. I, um… this planet has aggressive aliens on it that want to… mate with me.” He said, trying not to put too much detail into it. “They saved me, though… I-I’m okay; I just… need to go take a bath or something… I-I feel really gross.”

“Oh… of course; please help yourself.” Allura said. “The rest of us will be done out here soon enough, but if you need anything just tell us, alright?”

“Y-yeah…” Keith said.

“I’ll take you in,” Shiro said. “Then I’ll come back and help you guys.”

“You don’t have to, Shiro. I-I’ll be fine, really.”

“I want to. I hate seeing my little brother like this.” Shiro said softly, then made his way towards the ship.

As they walked along Keith couldn’t help but look back at Lance, who looked extremely worried for the hothead’s condition. Keith gave him a soft smile, hoping to push away any fears that he had about Keith’s condition. 

 

Keith held his breath and let himself slip under the water up to his nose. His ears were down and his tail was wrapped around himself. He wished he could have the water as warm as possible but he knew better than that; he didn’t want to put the baby under any more stress than he already had for the day. Even though he had scrubbed himself clean he still felt filthy. They hadn’t done anything to him, but yet the fear of what could have happened had a tight grip on his mind.

The door to the bathroom opened, making Keith jump and sit up, looking towards the door as Lance walked in, closing the door behind him.

“L-Lance?” Keith blushed, covering his chest as though there was something there to hide. “W-what are you doing?”

Lance chuckled, a blush on his own face. “Well… honestly, I don’t know.” He sat down on the toilet seat while putting his hand in the bath water, grabbing a small amount and dropping it on Keith’s shoulder. “I guess you can say that I’m confessing to you.” He said, and Keith looked up, his big eyes curious.

“You’re… what?”

“Confessing.” Lance said again, this time his voice more stern. “Listen… for the past few days I’ve been really confused of how I feel about you, and even now I’m not sure if what I’m feeling is because of your mating season… but if I really think about it then I realize that… I’ve had feelings for you since the beginning, Keith.”

Keith felt his heart racing again, this time a good kind of pounding that filled his chest with warmth.

“Even before I even really got to know you, I thought you were really cool, and attractive, and- so, I guess what I’m saying is that… if you’ll have me, Keith, I would love for us to try to be together again. I-I don’t want anything to ever happen to you or me and for me not to say that. I love you, Keith.”

Keith blushed softly, not moving as Lance put his hand on the far edge of the tub and leaned forward, using the edge to hold himself up as he kissed Keith. Keith moaned in surprise but didn’t question the instinct to kiss back, tears dripping down his face as he wrapped his arm around the back of Lance’s neck. This knocked Lance off-balance and the Blue Paladin fell in the tub, splashing the water over the edge.

Keith laughed, looking down at Lance whose head was on his chest, his tan face bright red.

“You think that’s funny, huh?”

“A-a little, yeah.”

Lance sat up between Keith’s legs before splashing Keith. Keith gasped in surprise as splashed back, the two continuing to splash one another until Lance had to finally pin Keith’s wrists above his head and kissed him again softly on the lips.

“So what do you say, Keith? Will you take me back?”

“O-of course.” Keith said.


	40. Authors Note!

Hi everybody!

Yeah, I know all ya'll were hoping for a chapter, and that's still likely going to happen but it'll be posted in a few hours. I try to post every day or every other day depending on my schedule, my girlfriend/editors schedule, and internet connection. Which is kind of the point for this little Authors note, I'm going up the Mountain to watch the Meteor Shower tomorrow afternoon so you might not get a chapter until Sunday Afternoon, I'm so sorry, I'm doing my best I promise.

I'm taking my laptop up the Mountain and will be working on new chapters, but I won't be able to post them. However I do have three chapters already finished (they just need to be edited) so just know that I'm continuing this and I'm planning on finishing it! We don't have much longer left with this... (I say but there's like 15 more chapters coming XD) but I do have some big news sooo let's try to ignore the little bad, push down the extreme anxiety I'm feeling about this trip and give ya'll some good new's huh?

I am planning a sequel to this story, if of course you guys would like one! So I'm going to tell you the plot I have so far and you guys tell me if it sounds like something you'd want to read!

Okay, so instead of following Keith around like this story does it would follow Keith's eldest child (the one from this story). It takes place 19 or so years in the future when Allura calls them all back to space for a big celebration (yay!) and not only do the Paladin's we love go, with their lion's, but they also take their kids (most of the paladin's have kids at this point). Some of the kids get along, others don't and just when things begin to reach their peek the party is attacked. The parents are kidnapped, and the kids are trapped. All but one of the lions are stolen because the final lion is trapped with the kids and is out of commission. It's now up to the kids to become the Paladin's of the Next generation to rescue their lions, save their parents, and put a stop to this new war before it destroys everything their parents worked so hard for.

That's just a summery, I don't want to give away too much if I do end up writing it. If you guys thing I should please leave a comment and even some of your ideas down bellow! I love hearing your suggestions. I already have the kids decided (their names, looks, genders, family, and which lion they drive) as well as some of the story decided. So again, let me know how you feel about that.

Anyways, I'm going to keep writing some more chapters while I wait for my girlfriend to edit the next chapter for you guys. Thank you for being so patient, and sorry I don't reply to your comments >///< I'm really shy.


	41. Makin' Waves

Despite being back together again, Keith was doing his best to stay in his room so that he didn’t feel any extra ‘urges’ around Lance, which Lance thankfully seemed to understand. Though the fear of what had happened the day before was still enough to make Keith not want to be touched at all. They had thankfully left the planet so Keith didn’t have to worry about the monstrous trees coming after him again, but at the same time he knew that this was only just the beginning. Just because he was almost out of the most dangerous time of his pregnancy didn’t mean anything; he was still an Omega and people would still try to hurt him at all times. There was no saying that they wouldn’t come after him any time during his pregnancy or even after the baby was born. He was in constant danger now, and if his child ended up being an Omega too…

Keith sighed. He hated these kinds of thoughts. All he wanted to do was read and he wasn’t having any luck; he simply couldn’t focus on what was in front of him. He put the translated papers down on his chest before looking down at his stomach where the mice had gathered. He didn’t know if they really understood what was going on, but they had recently started getting really close to him and now they were beginning to take naps on his stomach whenever they had the chance.

Keith reached down, petting the largest mouse and running his fingers between his ears. How were they not afraid of him? After all, he looked so much like a cat… or a wolf? Honestly he had no idea what kind of animal the Galra would be considered, though he guessed he was more cat-like thanks to his lion-like tail. The mouse looked up at him, a smile on his face as he nuzzled into Keith’s hand.

Keith looked back up at the living room ceiling above him, trying to fight off nausea while he closed his eyes. He had been feeling sick again the past few hours; he wanted to say it was his ‘morning sickness’ that seemed to come more in the late afternoon than in the morning. He had managed to get better at holding in the food he ate during the day though, with only slight dizziness afterwards.

“Hello, Keith.” Allura said as she walked over. “How are you feeling today?”

“Better.” Keith smiled softly. “Though I will admit that not being able to do as much training is making me a little frustrated.”

“Really? I suspected you enjoyed training, though I thought that you would enjoy this time to yourself.”

Keith sighed, looking in the direction of the training deck where everybody else was training. “I’d rather be training than resting. If I’m alone with my thoughts too long I start to make myself depressed.” He admitted, picking up the mice softly as he sat up and put them down on the couch. “I hate not being able to do anything.”

“Well…” Allura thought for a moment. “There is one thing we can all do.” She said, making Keith look up at her curiously. “We can swim after they’re done training; you can get the exercise you want without putting as much stress on your body.”

“Really?” Keith smiled. He had never been a big fan of the water, but right now anything was better than just sitting around and doing nothing. “Can I, um… can I go now?”

“Sure! Go ahead; I’ll be joining you as well.” She said with a soft smile. “Just please be careful.”

Keith smiled. “No problem; I can do that.” He said, getting to his feet before running towards his bedroom so that he could change.

 

He let out a soft sigh as he floated in the pool. He wasn’t exactly fond of the way the water made his fur cling to his skin, but at the same time it felt really good. The baby had been squirming a little when he had first gotten in, but it had settled down now and only gave an occasional kick.

Keith opened his eyes when he felt the water move and he looked up to see that Lance had gotten in the water.

“Hey, mi amor. I thought you didn’t like water.”

“I don’t, kinda, but I can’t just sit around and do nothing.”

“So you’re floating around, doing nothing?” Chuckled Lance as he kissed Keith’s forehead, making the Galra blush and look away softly. “Though I will admit you look stunning like this.” Lance put his arms under Keith before pulling him into his arms, rocking him lovingly in the water.

Keith put his forehead against Lance’s neck, closing his eyes and letting himself be carried a little deeper into the water. With anybody else Keith would have tensed up or freaked out, but Lance was the best swimmer and he knew that Lance wouldn’t allow anything to happen to him.

“What are you thinking about, Keith?” Lance asked.

“Honestly, I’m just anxious about everything. The baby, the fear, the pain, what happened yesterday… I just can’t help but focus on the bad.”

Lance frowned. “Well then, let’s figure out some good, huh? Let’s talk about baby names.”

“Can’t we just wait until the babies are born?” Keith said with a sigh. “What if we choose a name but then they’re born and the name just doesn’t fit… you know? Not to mention I don’t want them to have a terrible name like ‘Keith’.”

“Come on; Keith is a cute name.”

“You’re just saying that because it’s not your name. Keith is a terrible name.” He sighed, closing his eyes as he nuzzled against Lance’s neck. “Can we just float here for a while, please? We can think of names when it gets closer to that time.”

“Okay, Keith. Let’s float.” Lance said, kissing his cheek.

After a long moment of floating there, the rest of the crew joined them in the room and climbed into the water. Even Pidge was more than a little excited to climb into the water and soak away the pain from training. Matt and Shiro stayed close to the edge as they talked while Pidge floated in a bright green pool tube, Hunk pushed around a makeshift surfboard with the mice on it, Allura sat on a blow-up chair while Coran stood on the edge, serving as a lifeguard for the pool. It almost felt like he was back on Earth again.

“You know,” Lance said, “Where I grew up we were right next to the island, and a lot of the time it was raining so we couldn’t surf. But one summer everything was perfect, as though everything in the world had decided that that day was going to be the best day of my life. I knew the moment I woke up that day that it was different than any others. It was. My mom, who hadn’t been surfing since my youngest sibling was born nearly eight years before, decided to get back on her board. Now let me tell you, that is not an easy feat for somebody like my mom; she has bad knees and a temper. But the moment she got on that board and a wave hit, she transformed from the woman that had raised me, with the bad knees, the greying hair, the wrinkled face, to a young woman with a smile on her face, her hands up, laughing as hard as she could and cheering us to join her in the ocean. In the end even my dad, who hated the ocean, got on a board and went out into the sea and watched the rest of us swim and play with our mom in the water. It’s one of the reasons I love the water so much. That memory, and many others, and while swimming makes me miss the ocean… miss my family… I’m here and I’m enjoying being with you in this pool, knowing that someday soon you and I will be able to go to Earth and I could teach you and our kids to surf, so that one day we can all share memories like that.”

Keith looked at him before looking away with a blush. He didn’t have good memories like that, but the idea of making some filled his chest with warmth. “I’d like that. A lot.” He said, giggling softly as Lance kissed his forehead.

“Me too.”


	42. Fathers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My plans for the day were killed by a thunderstorm so instead I've been working on some chapters with my girlfriend. :D I'm going to try to post one chapter a day so long as I have enough written though some days I might post two. Anyways, here ya go.

The air was uncomfortably warm as he tossed and turned in his bed, sweat soaking his clothes and the sheets under him. He had already kicked off all his blankets and was only in his boxers and a tank top. If he pulled off any more clothes he would be completely naked. It was way too warm.

Keith opened his eyes, sitting up in his bed, the warm Arizona air coming through his open window. He whimpered softly. He felt like he was melting, yet he was shivering as he climbed out of his bed and walked into the kitchen where, to his surprise, his father was sitting. He was drinking a cup of coffee and reading the paper.

“Dad?” Keith said, surprised to find his voice hoarse.

“Keith?” His dad looked up, then smiled. “I was wonderin’ if ya were ever gonna wake up.” He gave his lap a gentle tap. “Come on over an’ help me with this crosspuzzle, huh?”

Keith smiled, walking over to the man, who seemed much taller than he remembered him being during the Marmora hallucination… was this a dream? Whatever it was, he was going to take advantage of it. Any time with his father was welcome. Keith climbed up onto his father’s lap, looking down at the paper as they read it together.

“Four letter word for ‘a deep emotional connection’. Hm, that’s a tough‘n.”

Keith thought for a moment before smiling. “Love!” He said.

“Oh, ya think? Well, here; write it in.” His dad handed him the pen before messing up Keith’s hair, stopping mid-pat. “Hold on… are ya feelin’ okay there, buddy?”

“Um… my throat hurts and it’s a little hot, but I'm okay.” He said with a shrug, reading the next part as though not caring about his father's clear concerns.

His father placed his warm, calloused hands on Keith’s forehead with a worried hum. “No, that’s not all ya got; ya got a fever.” He said, picking Keith up and sitting him on the table. “We’re gonna take your temperature, ‘kay?”

“Okay.” Keith said, softly kicking his feet while his father walked out of the room.

The cabin looked so much better when it was put together like this; the way Keith had been living in it made it look like a dump but the way his father had kept it up made it look amazing, though it was still clearly missing a ‘woman’s’ touch. His father came back rather quickly and put the thermometer in Keith’s mouth.

“Not good; 102… sorry, big guy; looks like today is going to be a down day. But this means that ya can watch any movie ya want.”

Keith smiled. “Really? YAY!” Keith put his arms in the air before letting out a cough. He was feeling dizzy and tired. The more he moved, the dizzier he became and the more his head ached. “I wanna watch Twister.”

“Ooh, an old classic; that’s my boy.” Keith’s father picked him up, holding him kindly in his arms before carrying him to the couch in the corner and laid him down. “I’ll get that set up for ya, okay? But I want ya to rest; no need to be pushin’ yourself today. Take it easy an’ let others take care of ya on days like today. Ya may not know this, but you’re a lot more special than any other six-year-old, an’ one day you’ll be able to prove it. For now, though, ya need to rest.”

“Okay, Dad…”

 

“Dad…” Keith moaned, waking Lance the rest of the way out of his dazed state.

Keith was laying on the bed next to him, having fallen asleep sometime the day before while they were swimming so instead of waking him up Lance had just brought him straight to his room so he could sleep more soundly. Now that Lance was actually looking at Keith, though, he seemed surprisingly more pale under the fur. His breathing was harder, he was sweating, and he was shivering.

“Keith?” Lance frowned, touching Keith’s forehead, his eyes widening as he felt just how hot he was. He was burning up with a fever. “Oi, Keith! Hey, wake up.”

Keith whimpered softly, his head flopping weakly to the side but he didn’t seem to be any closer to waking up. Lance remembered that his older siblings and Mom got sick a lot when they were pregnant so he knew it was normal, but for Keith he could only fear that it was more dangerous for the Galra boy.

Lance scrambled to his feet and ran to the hallway, opening the door with panic starting to rise in his chest. “Coran! Pidge! Shiro! Somebody, help!” He yelled loudly.

He wasn’t surprised to see the entire crew rushing towards him not long after, with Shiro in the lead.

“Lance, what’s wrong?” Shiro asked with a frown.

“It’s Keith; he has a crazy fever and he won’t wake up!”

Lance stepped out of the way as Shiro walked into the room and sat next to Keith, touching his head. Keith moaned against the cold metal of Shiro’s arm, but once again was unable to open his eyes.

“We should put him in the healing pod.” Allura said.

“We don’t know what effect that will have on the babies.” Lance said fearfully.

“Well, what else can we do?” Shiro said.

“We work the old-fashioned way.” Hunk suggested, surprising the others. “We have some of the pain medicine from the Space Mall; they should work as fever reducers… we have to get his temperature down and just work from there.”

“Right… you’re right… we’re depending too much on tech. We do it how we would on Earth. Let’s get him to the Medical Bay and see if we can cool him down.” Shiro said, picking up Keith who whined softly and curled up against Shiro’s chest.

“He hardly ever gets sick.” Shiro said with a frown as he carried him along. “I’ve only seen him get sick once and it was bad…”

“How bad?” Coran asked.

“Bad enough that he was hospitalized for three nights; he didn’t even remember why he was in the hospital…”

They walked into the Medical Bay and Shiro laid Keith down on one of the beds. He then put a cold washcloth on his head while Pidge, Matt, and Coran got ready to give Keith an injection to hopefully lower his temperature.

“Why would he get sick so suddenly?” Allura asked worriedly.

“He fell asleep with wet hair…” Lance said softly. “I-I normally keep my room colder than everybody else’s because I hate getting too warm at night… this is my fault.” Lance sat down on a chair as he held Keith’s hand worriedly. “I got him sick… I got him really sick… what if he gets too sick? What if this hurts the baby? Oh man, what did I do?”

“Lance, breathe.” Hunk said, putting his hand on Lance’s shoulder. “This is not your fault, okay? Pregnancies always seem to end in the pregnant one getting a cold. Trust me, it happens a lot. We’ll just have to take care of Keith until he pushes past this; he’ll be fine, I promise.”

Lance sucked in a nervous breath, running his thumb over the top of Keith’s hand, watching as Coran gave Keith a shot before putting an IV into Keith’s other arm. Keith, who would normally cry or whimper at the feeling of one of his least favorite things entering his arm, didn’t even move.

“Keith… Hang in there, please… I need you.”


	43. One or Many?

After nearly two days of Keith being in his unconscious state, Coran and Pidge decided to check on the babies to make sure that they weren’t in any real danger. Pidge had figured out a way to make a machine to look at them, much like an ultrasound machine that they would find on Earth. Of course, to find out if the babies were healthy they would also be finding out just what to expect. They would know how many there were, and possibly even the gender of the babies. They wanted to wait for Keith but in the state he was in, with no sign of waking up, they couldn’t wait for him.

Lance rolled up Keith’s shirt to his chest, frowning when Keith only moaned in discomfort but made no other signs of waking up. “Come on, Keith, you need to wake up. This is important.”

Keith’s breathing was deep and hard, his ears down, the occasional whimper or cry in his sleep only make Lance feel worse about the situation. This was all his fault, he got Keith sick. He should have taken better care of Keith and now-

“Lance, we’re ready.” Pidge said, causing Lance to look up at her.

“R-right.” Lance took a step back so Pidge could put the ‘wand’ on Keith’s stomach. She began to move it around, keeping an eye on the monitor before she looked back to Keith.

Hunk, Allura, Matt, and Coran looked at the screen while Shiro and Lance were focused on Keith and his condition. The room was silent aside from the sound of Keith’s heartbeat on the monitor. It lasted for a long moment until the sound of a more rapid heartbeat could be heard over it. Lance froze and looked up at the screen.

“Okay, I’m seeing… something.”

Coran was right; the longer Lance looked, the more obvious it became. There was a small figure on the screen, no larger than a lime, curled up on itself. It didn’t look like much, but then again Keith wasn’t really that far along in his pregnancy. Only about twelve weeks if this was a normal human pregnancy. If, of course, Lance was doing his math right; he would have to run it past Pidge later.

“There’s just one.” Hunk said, his voice full of worry.

Lance frowned. “I… I don’t know if I’m happy or sad? I mean… we don’t know what kind of pregnancy this is. It could be good or bad…”

“The infant's vital signs appear to be in a healthy range.” Coran said with a soft smile. “So at least none of this is affecting them negatively.”

“Do… do we want to know gender?” Shiro asked Lance, who after a moment shook his head.

“No. I don’t want to know until Keith is able to know.” Lance said with a frown. “It wouldn’t be fair if he didn’t know first.”

“You’re right…” Pidge smiled. “Okay, now that we know the baby is safe we can check on it now and then again to double-check that the medicines we're using aren’t having a bad effect on it.”

The room fell quiet again as they all silently listened to the beating hearts of their friend and his unborn child. Lance fell into a silent state yet again, sitting next to Keith’s bed, holding his hand as he rubbed the back of it with his thumb. His entire body still felt warm and clammy to the touch. It was slightly frustrating to Lance, but he also knew there was nothing he could do for the man he loved right now.

He hummed softly, putting his forehead against Keith’s warm temple as he softly began singing.

“I hear the wind call your name, it calls me back home again. It sparks the fire, a flame that still burns. Oh, it’s to you, I will always return…” Lance moved his hand down to Keith’s stomach when Pidge finally moved the wand from his stomach, and he felt the baby kick as he started singing again. “I still feel your breath on my skin, I hear your voice deep within, the sound of my lover, a feeling so strong, it’s to you I will always belong…”

 

He wanted to leave, but spending this time with his father was something he had been wanting for what felt like forever. Keith hadn’t seen his dad since he was 6, the night he vanished without a trace. Keith spent two days looking for his dad before he finally stole the truck from the back yard and drove it to town. If he had stayed home he would have starved to death, but leaving home only made him an orphan and took away any chance that his father ever came back looking for him.

Keith had so many questions, but he knew deep down that this was just a dream and he wouldn’t get any real answers here. Keith sighed heavily, putting his head on his dad’s chest while trying to focus on the TV. He still didn’t feel good, which was weird for a dream, but he guessed that if he woke up he would be sick then too. It was easier dealing with being sick in his sleep than it would be if he was awake.

“Keith, don’t ya have somewhere to be?” His dad asked, running his fingers through Keith’s hair. “I’m sure your friends are worried about ya.”

“I know they are… but I don’t want to feel sick… Not any more sick than I already feel…” Keith said, putting his arms over his eyes as he buried his face against his dad’s chest. “Plus, I miss you, Dad, and this is the only way I ever get to see you. Can’t I stay? Just a little longer?”

“Son, I know ya want to stay here with me, an’ I would like nothin’ more than to spend this time with ya, but… your friends need ya. Your baby needs ya.”

Keith sighed softly, sucking in a breath. “Okay, Dad.” Keith wrapped his arms around his dad’s neck as his father sat up and gave him a tight hug.

“You’ll be fine; you’ve been doing great already. I’m proud of ya, Keith. I always have been an’ I always will be.” He said. “You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met, an’ that will never change. Just know that while I'm not with ya physically I will always be with ya in here.” His father said, poking Keith’s chest where his heart was. “I love ya.”

“I love you too, Dad…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song that Lance sings in this part is "Always Return" from the Movie Spirit.


	44. Baby Names

Keith moaned painfully as he opened his eyes. His throat was raw and scratchy, his head hurt, and he felt extremely dizzy. He could hear the sound of a heart monitor next to him, and after looking up at the ceiling for a moment his vision began to clear and he figured out that he was in the Medical Bay. He sucked in a breath, looking around for any sign of somebody around him until he discovered that somebody was holding his hand.

Keith looked over, frowning at Lance, who was the one holding his hand. Lance’s head was on his chest, holding his hand while he softly snored. Even while sleeping Lance looked exhausted, almost as though he hadn’t been eating or sleeping for almost a week. Keith sucked in a breath, painfully moving his left arm over to Lance’s head as he began to play with his hair. The pain was intense and frustrating, suggesting that he had been given multiple shots, and with an IV in his right arm he had a feeling it was going to be more than just a little frustrating.

“Lance…” Keith’s voice cracked as he spoke.

Lance blinked awake, then his face lit up when he saw that Keith was awake. 

“Keith! How do you feel? Are you okay?” Lance touched his forehead, making Keith sigh under his cold hand. “Your fever is going down… that’s good.”

“I don’t feel well, but… I’m okay… how long have I been asleep?”

“Um… today would be the third day? I think so; I don’t know. I haven’t left your side since I realized you were sick…”

“You…” Keith blushed. “Y-you didn’t have to do that.”

“Sure I did, Keith. Seeing you down and out cold like that… I didn’t know what to do. I was so worried about you. I-I didn’t want to lose you. Keith, I love you. I want to tell you that, right here and now. I love you and you scared the shit out of me.”

Keith now felt like he was melting; not because of his fever but because he was blushing so hard. “I-I-I love you too, Lance… I-I’m sorry if I was a burden.”

Lance shook his head. “No, you’ve never been a burden and you never will be… we did learn something while you were unconscious, though.”

“Y-you did?”

“Yeah, we checked to make sure the baby was okay and we found that there is just one baby growing in you… we didn’t check the gender because that’s something we all wanted to make sure that you were awake for.”

“Just one? But… that could mean-”

“I know… the stakes are high… so far this has been a more Galran pregnancy, but… maybe we’ll be lucky and the baby will be healthy.” Lance pushed Keith’s hair out of his face. “We’ll face it, though; no matter what happens.”

Keith blushed impossibly darker, to the point where even his ears were soft pink from the blush. Lance put their foreheads together, smirking slightly. Lance was so much cooler to the touch than he was. He felt like he was melting, and now he knew why all of his friends were so worried about him.

“I know you just woke up… but you should try to eat.”

Keith groaned at the idea. He didn’t want to eat. He didn’t want to do anything but go back to sleep. It wasn’t something he really felt comfortable doing now, though. Lance was so worried about him, and after three days Keith would be too. “Food… sounds awful.” Keith said with a sniffle as he rubbed his nose. “A warm drink sounds good, though…”

“I can do that.” Lance smiled. “I’ll be right back; keep the IV in until I can get Coran to come help you, alright?”

“Okay…” Keith nodded, trying to keep himself awake as Lance walked away.

Why was Keith so tired? It sounded like he had done nothing but sleep, so why did it feel like he hadn’t slept for weeks?

A familiar yet startling movement in his stomach jolted him back awake. He put his hand on his stomach softly, giving it a gentle rub where the kicking was coming from. Knowing that there was only one brought on a lot of different feelings for the young Paladin. On one hand he didn’t have to worry about messing up more than one child's life, but at the same time it could end up worse for the baby to be only a single child. Which brought up another point that Lance had mentioned. Names.

They really did need to think of names for the baby, which would be easier if they knew the gender, though he felt like having it be a surprise would be fun.

Keith sighed, putting his arm over his eyes as he sucked in some shuddering breaths. It still felt like it was too much, way too much. It was getting to be frustrating enough that Keith wanted to just run away, but he couldn’t run away from a pregnancy. It was something he would have to deal with until it was born… then the others would really be able to help him. For now, though, he felt as though he was all on his own.

“Here you go.” Lance smiled softly, causing Keith to frown and force himself to sit up, the shunt in his arm pushing painfully against his nerve. Lance handed him the cup he was holding and Keith couldn’t help but smile and relax at the warmth from between his hands. He then brought it to his lips and took a sip, thankful that despite being a type of tea it was one that he didn’t mind too much. A lot of the tea they had in space was really gross, but this one was one that he didn’t mind too much.

“What about Apollo?” Lance asked suddenly, causing Keith to look up, tilting his head curiously.

“What about it?”

“I mean, is that a good baby name? I-I’ve been thinking a lot about it since you fell asleep… I-I was afraid that… if you didn’t wake up… and the baby was born early… or lost… I just wanted something to call it…”

Keith smiled softly. Lance really had been worried about him and the baby. It was a nice change for Keith not to be the one worrying all the time. “I kind of like the name Atlas for a boy, and Pandora for a girl.” He blushed. “I… kinda thought about it too…”

Lance laughed. “Well, seems like the space theme is common for both of us, so we can work with that, at least. Hm… Pandora is really cute for a girl, but there's also Nova; that’s kinda cute.”

Keith nodded “Well, then there we go; we have four names. Two for if it’s a boy and two for if it’s a girl… we don’t have to actually choose until they’re born, and by that point we can go with whatever feels right.” Keith rubbed his stomach as the baby kicked before taking another sip of the tea.

His throat still hurt, his head throbbed, his nose, was running and it was hard to breathe, but surprisingly he was okay with all of that. Lance was by his side and that was enough for him. Keith sucked in another gulp of his tea before putting his head on Lance’s shoulder.

“So… did you have any dreams?” Lance asked.

“Yeah… why?”

“Well… you called out for your dad a few times.” Lance said with a soft frown as Keith hid his face against Lance’s shirt. “Were… you guys close?”

“As close as a six-year-old could be with their parent.” Keith said softly. “It was just the two of us in that old cabin; whenever he wasn’t working he and I would do crossword puzzles, or he’d have me help him fix his truck.” Keith let out a chuckle. “Whenever the truck was working he would put me on his lap and let me drive while he pushed on the gas. I really miss those times; I really miss him… I only hope that I can be half the Dad he was.”

“You will be. You have what he taught you; what you’ve learned from all your different homes. And-” Lance kissed his forehead. “You’ll have plenty of time to learn.”

“T-thank you, Lance… I really think he’d like you.” Keith said. “He really respected honest people who make others laugh... not to mention he’s a lot like Shiro, and Shiro likes you.”

“Do you think he’d approve of us being together?”

Keith frowned. “I don’t know… I was six; we never talked about it. He didn’t even know I was gay; hell, I didn’t even know I was gay until I was ten.”

Lance smiled. “I’m sure he would. As close as you two sound, I’m sure he would approve of anything that makes you happy.”

“What do you think your parents are going to think about it all?”

“My dad might not be too excited about me being with another guy, but he won’t turn either of us away. My mom will love you and the baby.”

“I hope so… I would hate to ruin the relationship you have with them already…”

Lance’s smile faded as he ran his fingers through Keith’s hair, near his ears. “Keith, you need to stop thinking like that. You and I are a family, a team… all this stress isn’t good for you, and it’s really not good for the baby. Please, leave stressing about things for another time or when there’s a reason to be so stressed; for now, though, let me worry about everything.”

“I-I’ll try.” Keith said, his voice soft.


	45. The Most Hated Day

Keith sighed, looking at the ‘calendar’ he had made a few weeks before he had discovered his ‘mating season’. Since he discovered his pregnancy he had been keeping track of everything he had been feeling. It was the day after he had woken up, and while he was still sick, he felt much better. It was the day before he would reach his sixth week of pregnancy, but it wasn’t the fact that he was sick or that he was already so close to his sixth week that was bothering him; it was the date itself.

October 15th.

In eight days, it would be his birthday. He would be turning 20. He felt too young to be a parent, which brought up the fact that Lance had only just turned 19 in July. Lance was still a kid. To make matters worse, the only person who even knew Keith's birthday was Shiro, and despite the fact that Shiro knew he hated his birthday… Shiro would try to celebrate it.

Keith let out a heavy sigh, crossing out the current day before rubbing his stomach softly. “I hope you like your birthday. I hope it’s not on a holiday, and that everything always goes right on your special day. No child should hate their birthday, and if I can help it you will never hate your birthday. I will make sure everything is perfect. You will get whatever you want, the biggest and best cake on the street, and your dad and I won’t ever fight. You’ll never be alone on it… I promise.”

“Keith?” Pidge walked in. “Are you… talking to yourself?”

“U-um, no. I’m talking to the baby.” Keith said, a deep blush covering his face.

Pidge smiled. “Well, I was reading up on it and the baby can hear you; at least, if it has enough of your Galra DNA it will be able to hear you by now. If it were a human baby, it wouldn’t be able to hear you for a few more weeks.”

“So… can it understand me?”

“Understand, no. But it should be able to recognize your voice, so talking to the baby will be the best thing for it. The more you talk to it, the better. It’s good for all of us to talk to you and the baby, especially you and Lance.”

“Yeah?” Keith blushed softly, looking down at his stomach.

“Yeah. So go have Lance talk to the baby instead of just singing to it when you’re unconscious.”

“What?!”

“Yeah; he sings to the baby. But only when you’re not awake.” Pidge shrugged, her hands behind her head.

Keith covered his eyes, letting the calendar fall off his lap and onto the floor. “I-I didn’t need to know that.” He said quietly.

“Yeah, just watch. Pretend to be asleep and he’ll come over, put his head on your stomach, and then start singing.” Pidge smiled, walking over and picking up the calendar with a frown. “Why is the 23rd circled?”

Keith quickly uncovered his eyes and took the calendar from her. “N-no reason. It’s not important.” He pulled it against his chest with a deep breath and a heavy sigh.

“It’s obviously important enough for you to circle it.” Pidge pointed out and Keith sighed.

“Please, Pidge, just drop it. It’s really nothing to worry about.”

“Can’t be Halloween; that’s on the 31st. Anniversary, maybe? Special occasion? Birthday?”

Keith’s ears twitched before going down, causing Pidge to frown.

“Birthday? Who's? ...Yours?”

Keith’s tail curled around his leg and he looked around, trying to focus on anything that wasn’t Pidge.

“Keith, why are you keeping it such a secret? It’s a birthday; it’s a good thing!” She smiled and Keith shook his head.

“No. It’s not, Pidge. I haven't celebrated my birthday in years; the last time I did was the year before Shiro vanished. He brought a small cake to my room and the two of us shared it… before then, though, I hadn’t celebrated my birthday since I was six. In a house full of orphans, another birthday isn’t a big thing.” Keith shrugged sadly.

“You mean you haven’t celebrated your birthday since Shiro came back?”

“No. Shiro will tell me Happy Birthday but I’m gonna ask him not to make a big deal out of it, and I'm going to ask you to do the same thing.”

“Keith-”

“Please, Pidge. Just drop it.” Keith got off the hospital bed, deciding he needed to be the one to walk away before the conversation could continue. He walked out of the room, holding the calendar as he walked along, his legs shaking as he did so.

He walked towards Lance’s room, where he was hoping Lance was. He didn’t want to talk about anything, but with Lance he never really had to; Lance would do all the talking for him and let Keith focus on other things. Keith pushed open the door when he got there, freezing when he saw that Lance was in the middle of changing into his normal, everyday clothes. Lance’s shirt was mostly pulled off and he had his jeans on already.

The two stared at each other for a moment before Lance winked at Keith, making the raven-haired boy blush and quickly back out of the room. The last thing he needed was to be turned on by the sight of Lance’s beauty. Keith leaned against the wall, a blush burning onto his face for a long while before Lance opened his door, now wearing everything but his coat.

“You doing okay?” Lance asked. “I mean, besides the fact that you’re blushing like a tomato, how are you feeling?”

“Better than I was.” Keith said, walking over to Lance as he put his head on Lance’s chest, hugging the taller male. “I, um, I heard that you have a habit of singing to the baby.”  
This time it was Lance’s turn to blush as he rubbed Keith’s back.

“Y-yeah, well, babies like music… don’t they?”

“I think so; I mean, it doesn’t have a problem with the singing… and I don’t either. I’d like for you to sing to it more and maybe talking to the baby would be nice. I-I can’t be the only one talking to them.” Keith said, closing his eyes gently. The sound of Lance’s heartbeat was so calming.

“Okay, I’ll remember that.” Lance smiled, suddenly picking Keith up bridal-style as he carried him down the hall towards the Lunch Room.

“W-w-what are you doing?” Keith asked, clinging to Lance, afraid of being dropped.

“Carrying you. You haven’t eaten much since you woke up, so Hunk and I are planning to feed you until you’re stuffed. You and our baby need as much food as you can get.”  
The words ‘our baby’ really hit Keith, causing him to blush and bury his face into the crook of Lance’s neck. He really liked the way that sounded. It wasn’t just ‘his baby’; it wasn’t just Lance’s baby. It was their baby. Keith hummed softly, letting Lance carry him the rest of the way into the Lunch Room and set him down on the chair.

“My Prince.” Lance said, kissing Keith’s forehead. “I’m going to go help Hunk bring out your food, okay? Stay. Put.”

“Y-y-yeah. I-I will. I promise.”

 

Pidge frowned, walking along the space corridor. She understood why Keith didn’t like his birthday; he had been an orphan for a long time after his dad vanished, and after so many years of being forgotten he had come to hate it. But she didn’t understand why he wouldn’t let them try to make his birthday a better experience for him. They loved him and all they wanted was a chance to prove it.

Pidge bumped into Shiro and Matt, literally, and almost fell at the abrupt contact. Matt laughed softly.

“Woah; you okay there, Space Cadet?”

Pidge nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just… thinking about Keith.”

“What about Keith?” Shiro asked. “Is he okay?”

“Well, considering he has a part-alien baby growing inside of him, his skin has turned purple, and he’s still suffering from a cold, he’s doing okay. What I’m thinking about is… his birthday is coming up. I found out because he made a calendar and the 23rd was circled… he said that was his birthday.”

Shiro frowned and nodded. “Yeah, it is. He really doesn’t like his birthday; I’m surprised he told you about it.”

“I kinda… forced it out of him.” Pidge said, rubbing her arm.

“That doesn’t surprise me… and let me guess, now you want to fix it?” Matt guessed and Pidge nodded again.

“Yeah. I mean, I want to make him not hate his birthday anymore. I want to celebrate it but I don’t know how to do it without just making him mad…”

“There’s no real way to make him not hate his birthday.” Shiro said. “I really tried and all that ended up happening that night was Keith storming out of the house after eating the cake…”

Matt thought for a moment and frowned. “That was the night you spent the entire night out looking for him. You found him beat up on Garrison property… you spent the entire next day caring for his wounds and trying to get him to tell you who attacked him.”

“I never found out. Then the next year I vanished and he spent his birthday completely alone on that property. I don’t know how much we can actually do for him. We can tell   
Lance about his birthday coming up, but we shouldn’t push either of them into anything. It might only hurt Keith instead of help him.”

“Okay.” Pidge sighed. “I guess that makes sense.”

Matt messed up his sister’s hair softly before they all walked away, Matt and Shiro going one way while Pidge made her way towards her Lab.


	46. The Pain of a Birthday

The next day Keith was finally over his cold, but because of his pregnancy his temperature was a little higher than normal and he had a killer headache. Lance and Hunk kept Keith constantly fed, Shiro was always checking on him, Pidge watched Keith from a distance, likely wondering when a good time to bring up his birthday would be, Allura kept talking baby names, most of which Keith couldn’t even pronounce, and Coran was driving him crazy just by being Coran.

He knew it wasn’t their fault; he was just over-emotional. It was something he would just have to deal with until the end of his pregnancy, and maybe even a few weeks after that. Who knew what his body was going to go through after all of this was over?

Keith crossed his arms in frustration as he walked out of the room and made his way towards Red’s hanger. Maybe spending some quality time with his Lion would be good for him. Or so he could hope. He was so tense, and the closer his birthday got the more frustrated he knew he would get.

This time of the year was the worst for him and the people around him. It was around this time that his sadness got overwhelming and turned into anger. More often than not on his birthday he would go out for a walk, unconsciously upsetting somebody and getting in a fight. Last year wasn’t so bad because they were fighting Zarkon and Keith could train out the anger, but this year nobody would let him train and as far as they all knew, Zarkon was dead.

“Hey, Red.” Keith walked over to her, holding out his hand.

-Keith, hi!- She said, putting her head down so Keith could touch her nose. -How are you? How’s the baby? Pidge told Rose that there was only one and Rose told the rest of us.-

“It’s fine.” Keith rubbed his arm. “I’m just… stressed out and everybody is pestering me. I just want to take a nap without being bothered, you know?”

-I get it.- She smiled, opening her mouth so he could enter. -Come on in and rest; I won’t let anybody bother you unless it’s an emergency.-

“Thank you, Red.” Keith walked inside and to his seat, sitting down and leaning his head back. Normally the seats weren’t all that comfortable, but since he had gotten pregnant he had found that some of his best naps were taken in this chair. Keith then closed his eyes, calming down his breathing.

-Keith?-

“Yes, Red?”

-Rose also said you do not like your ‘Birth Day’. Is that not a big day for humans? Why would you not want to celebrate the day you were created?-

Keith groaned at the question. “I just don’t, okay? Nobody else wanted to celebrate my birthday in the orphanages I lived in, so why should I want to celebrate it?”

-Because your fellow Paladins wish to celebrate your creation. They care deeply for you, Keith… let them prove it to you.-

Keith sighed, getting up and climbing out of Red. “You know what, I changed my mind; I’m not tired.”

Red laid down, watching Keith leave.

Keith walked down the hall further until he got to the Black Lion’s hanger. He was more of the strong, silent type; maybe he’d let him sleep. Keith walked up to Black, his eyes growing heavy. He was so tired.

“Coal, hey; lemme in, buddy.” He said, rubbing his eye with one hand while patting the Lion’s large paw with the other.

-You look exhausted.-

“I am… lemme in, please. I just need a place to be alone for a while; I need to rest and clear my head.”

Coal was quiet for a long moment before he laid his head down and let Keith climb inside. -Why are you not with your mate?-

“Just need a break from everybody.” Keith climbed into the black chair, which was much larger than Red’s and even a little more comfortable. Keith then closed his eyes and began to drift off to sleep. The constant exhaustion was frustrating, and while he wanted nothing more than to just curl up in his nest in his room there were seven people who he had to get past to get there, none of whom he wanted to talk to or even see right now.

He didn’t want to talk about his birthday. He didn’t want to eat any more. He didn’t want to think about the baby for a few minutes. He just wanted to rest and be able to sleep.

 

The dorms were always cold to make up for the ridiculous Arizona temperatures, but still Keith constantly found that no matter how many blankets he pulled onto himself nothing could help him get warm. It was a weekend so there were no classes scheduled, but unlike most of the other students in the Garrison he wasn’t running around, or taking the school bus into town to get things to hold them off for another week. No.

This weekend Keith was going to stay in bed and sleep it away. If he ignored the fact that it was his birthday then nobody would be any wiser about it. His roommate was in town and his only friend was in a relationship, so he doubted he would have any visitors. Or at least that's what he thought until he heard knocking on the door.

Keith let out a frustrated growl before he pushed the blankets off and walked to the door, opening it quickly. “Jason isn’t- oh… hey, Shiro.” Keith said, looking over his friend. “What are you doing here?”

Shiro held up a plastic bag with a big smile. “I got you something, birthday boy.”

Keith tensed up at the words and quickly pulled Shiro into his room. “Do you want the entire school to know?! Shut up!”

“Keith? It’s just a birthday; it’s not the end of the world.” Shiro promised, pulling a small cake out of the bag and a bottle of soda. “Don’t worry so much, okay?”

Keith frowned. “It’s just… not a big deal, and I don’t want people knowing about it. Besides, the last thing I want is everybody talking to me and saying things that they don’t actually mean about me. They don’t care.”

“I care… Matt cares.”

“You guys have to care; you’re my team.”

“Keith.” Shiro sounded even sadder now as he put the cake down before pulling Keith into a hug. “You know that’s not true. You’re like family to me. I love you, and not because I have to.”

Keith hesitated for a moment before hugging Shiro back with a deep breath. “I… love you too. Sorry about that; I just…”

“It’s okay; you don’t have to apologize.” Shiro said. “Now come on; let’s eat this cake. It’s your favorite. Red Velvet.”

Keith’s stomach growled at the idea as he looked at the cake again. It looked so good. “Y-yeah, okay.”

The two sat down at the table and began eating the cake in silence. It was just after Keith had finished his cake that Shiro spoke up again.

“Keith, why don’t we go out and celebrate? It’s not good for you to lock yourself away on such an important day.”

“No. It’s not important.”

“But Keith, you’re turning sixteen; you should get out and try to have a good time. You’re only young once, Keith.”

“Shiro, I don’t care!” Keith finally snapped. “It’s better for me and everybody else if I spend my birthday alone. Okay? It doesn’t matter! I appreciate you going out of your way for me, but it doesn’t matter! Go ahead and let yourself out. I’m going for a walk.” Keith said, walking out of his dorm and slamming the door hard behind him.

Keith hated when Shiro did this, when he went out of his way to prove that he cared. He knew they had known each other for years, but every time Keith got close to somebody they vanished or he hurt them. The love hurt. It was too much. His father loved him and vanished, the one orphanage he loved and that had people that loved him burned down and he was blamed for it… if Shiro got too close…

Keith grunted in pain as he bumped into somebody easily four inches taller than him and much more muscular than Keith. Keith looked up, frowning when his eyes landed on who it was. Blond hair, green eyes, and the uniform of a Senior. Keith knew he was in trouble. Bryce.

“Hey, look who it is.” Bryce chuckled. “Mr. Birthday Boy.”

Keith frowned. ‘H-how did you-”

“Oh please, I’ve seen your file. Why aren’t you out celebrating, huh? Surely you have to have one friend who cares for you enough that you can spend time with them.”

Keith crossed his arms. He didn’t want to tell him that he was right, but he had never been the best at lying either.

Bryce’s eyes seemed to soften. “Well, I ain’t a big ‘birthday’ fan myself, so why don’t you and I go to the lunchroom and get something to eat, just the two of us?”

Keith frowned. His instincts were on edge and he wanted to say no, but the idea of eating something or having a soda really made his throat dry. He didn’t trust Bryce as far as he could throw him but despite everything that told him this was a bad idea, he nodded and followed Bryce anyways.

His instincts were proven to be correct when they were about halfway there and Bryce suddenly shoved Keith into a supply closet. Startled, Keith tripped slightly, slamming into the metal shelf in the corner and hitting his arm hard on the corner of it. Keith hissed in pain, holding his arm before he turned and looked at Bryce, who closed and locked the door.   
He had always trusted his instincts before, so why didn’t he listen to it this time?

“What the hell are you doing?” Keith asked, then felt his blood run cold as Bryce began to undo his belt. Keith clenched his fist and sucked in a breath. “Th-that’s not funny, Bryce.”

Bryce said nothing as he walked over to Keith, grabbing Keith’s already hurt arm before giving it a harsh yank above his head and once again slamming it against the metal shelf. Keith yelped in pain, struggling against him. He wanted to yell and scream for help. He knew that something really bad was going to happen if he didn’t, but the nagging thought that nobody would come to help him continuously came through.

Bryce pulled off his belt, spinning Keith around so he faced the shelf before Bryce tied Keith’s hands behind him with the thick leather. This was what really began to stress Keith out and convinced him to fight back. This wasn’t going to happen. Not today, and not to him.

Keith growled, slamming his head back and flinching when it made hard contact with Bryce’s throat. Bryce stumbled back, letting Keith go as he began coughing loudly, giving Keith only a split second to turn around before Bryce slammed his fist against Keith’s stomach. Keith let out a pained cough and gagged as he bent forward, shuddering in pain.   
Bryce then grabbed Keith’s hair, pushing Keith face down to the floor before standing on Keith’s back.

“I was just going to have a good time with you, you little freak, but now you’ve gone and made me mad. Now you’ll have to pay.” He cracked his fist. “Happy birthday, you fuckin’ loser.” He said, then brought a hard kick to Keith’s ribcage.

Kick after kick, punch after punch, Keith had no opportunities to get up or get free until the abuse was over almost an hour later. Then, just when Keith was beginning to lose consciousness from the pain Bryce untied him, then left without another word but not before spitting on Keith.

It hurt way too much; he thought he was going to die. His arm was sore and already bruised from hitting it on the metal shelves, his shoulders ached from being tied behind him, his left eye was swollen shut, and at least one rib was broken. It hurt too much to move, but he had a feeling that if he stayed there too long Bryce would come back for him… he could even bring friends. He didn’t want that. He couldn’t have that happen.

Keith sucked in a pained breath, pushing himself up to his hands and knees. He let out a choked sob as he fell back onto his butt and leaned against the wall. He regretted not bringing his phone, he regretted leaving Shiro- leaving his dorm. A few deep breaths later and he pulled himself up to his feet and stumbled out of the door before stumbling towards his dorm. Hopefully Shiro was still there. Keith wanted to apologize, wanted to say that he was sorry and that he really was thankful that he had done so much for him.

He opened his dorm door and guilt rushed over him. Shiro was gone and his room was empty aside from the soda sitting on the table. Keith walked in, closing the door behind him before he walked over to his bed and painfully climbed onto it. Even the comfort of his blanket and soft bed was nothing to ease the pain that he was feeling from all over his body. It was all too much.


	47. Black as Coal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My wonderful fiance, who works as my editor recently got a new job so chapters might not be coming out every day but I'm still working on it I promise. Thank you all for the lovely comments, it means more to me than you guys will probably ever understand. <3

Keith sat up with a slight gasp as he gripped at the Black Lion’s seat, sweat dripping down his face. He often forgot how bad things had gotten that night, and every time he remembered he only felt sicker. That was twice he had come close to being somebody or something's ‘play thing’; at least, those were the only ones he could remember.

Keith shuddered slightly; why did this kind of stuff always happen to him? Was he just cursed by some unseen force that just wanted to see him suffer? Or was this really something caused by what he was? Did he do something in a past life that he needed to pay for so badly that the universe just hated him and made it so everything he ever did hurt him or somebody around him?

-What is wrong, young Paladin? Your vitals are much higher than they should be.- Coal said, bringing Keith slowly back to reality.

“Just a bad dream…” Keith said, rubbing his eyes softly.

-I see. Unfortunately I cannot ‘console’ you on this matter. I have never had a ‘nightmare’, though by the looks of you I am unsure that I want to.-

Keith let out a forced chuckle. “No, you don’t. They suck, and sometimes they force you to relive some of your worst days.” Keith rubbed his arm.

-I see; is that what this specific one was about? Something from your past?-

“Yeah. There’s a few things from back then that I would rather just forget.” Keith sighed. “I hurt a lot of people and was hurt by just as many…”

-This does not mean that it is your fault. You are still quite young and should not have to worry about such things. Give yourself time, take it day by day and don’t depend on your team as much as they depend on you.-

“You sound like a fortune cookie.” Keith mumbled softly but was thankful for the advice anyways.

-Thank you, I suppose?- He said, clearly unsure of what a ‘Fortune Cookie’ was.

Keith chuckled, getting up slowly. “Thank you, Coal. I really needed that nap; I, um… I’m going to go now; chances are everybody will be freaking out over whenever I’ve gone to if I don’t show up soon.”

-Indeed they will, though I am unsure what they really expect to happen when you’re in a castle in space.-

Keith chuckled at the memory of the ‘haunted castle’, but said nothing. “Who knows?” He then climbed out of Black with a smile. “Thank you again.” He said, then made his way out of Black’s hanger.

Keith made his way down the hall towards the Main Deck, which he could only hope was where his friends were. He didn’t necessarily want to be surrounded by them again, but part of him really wanted to see his friends again. Despite how he acted and how he felt about them, sometimes they were his family and he really cared for them. He had to make sure that everybody was okay and nothing bad had happened while he had taken a nap.

When he walked onto the Bridge he was surprised that everybody was there, but they were all on edge, as though getting ready to run and look for something. This worried Keith; had something gone wrong? Was somebody hurt? Were they going to have to do a rescue mission?

“What’s wrong?” Keith asked worriedly and quickly gasped when Lance ran over and hugged him.

“Matt and Pidge think they figured out a way to call our parents!” Hunk said happily.

“Parents? Wait, you guys can contact Earth?” Keith blinked.

“Yeah! We can tell them what’s going on with ourselves, about the Garrison and what’s been going on and stuff like that but mostly… we can contact our families.” Lance said, his voice cracking in excitement.

Keith was sad that he would have nobody to talk to on Earth, but he was so happy that Lance would be able to see his parents again. He could possibly have that bright smile that had begun to fade over time make a reappearance. It seemed that the longer they stayed in space, the more depressed and anxious that Lance had become. Keith gave Lance a tight squeeze.

“I’m so happy for you, Lance. How long do you think it’ll take before you can talk to them?”

“Three days, give or take a few.” Pidge said. “Depends on the pressure of the atmosphere, the meteor activity, as well as potential radiation.”

“Great.” Keith said with a nervous chuckle. “That’s great. I’m sure your families are really worried about you.”

Lance nodded happily. “I can’t wait for my mom to meet you.” He smiled, pushing Keith’s hair out of his face. “She’s going to love you.”

“I… don’t know about that.” Keith said shyly. “I mean… won’t they think I’m weird? I-I have purple skin and ears and a tail… a-and I’m a guy…”

Lance smiled. “Breathe, Keith. It’ll be fine, I promise.” He said, littering Keith’s forehead with kisses, causing the Galra to chuckle with a blush.

He was happy that his friends would be able to see their parents again, but he still continuously wished that his father would be able to talk to him. He could only guess, though, that he would never have that chance ever again.

“I hope you’re right.” Keith smiled. “I really do.”


	48. Family

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I can't speak Spanish so I had to use Google Translate. Hopefully this all makes sense to those who can speak/read Spanish XD

Instead of having to wait three days they only had to wait for two before Pidge and Matt managed to get it to work, however they had to use two of the Lions and the Castle in order to get enough power and long-distance reach to get the signal to Earth. It was more than a little cool to think about, but also a little worrying to think of all the things that could go wrong. They could contact Earth and call the wrong family, or they could be intercepted by the government; if the wrong people were called it could put their families in danger.

Though Keith guessed that he was the only one thinking about these kinds of things.

“We’re ready.” Matt said, and Pidge rubbed her arm.

“W-who should we call first?” She wondered.

“It was your idea.” Shiro said. “You guys should call your mother first.”

“Indeed, but try to keep it short.” Coran said softly. “Even with all this extra power we will only be able to keep it up for about one Varga.” He said, making Pidge quickly whisper to Matt.

“One hour.”

“Got it.” Matt smiled, then typed on the console for a moment, watching as the screen began to static for a while until it lit up with a familiar view of their living room. They had managed to go through the computer network right to their home computer.

They looked around for a moment, thankful when their mother walked in front of the screen.

It had been two years since they had seen her, yet she didn’t look much different except the fact that her hair was slightly longer, and slightly greyer.

“Mom!” Pidge called. Their mother jumped, dropping the cup of coffee she was holding and causing Pidge to flinch when it shattered on the ground.

Their mother looked around, clearly confused. “K-Katie?”

“Mom, over here; look at the computer.” Matt said, and when she did what she was told her eyes began to well up with tears.

She ran over. “Katie, Matt; is that really you?” She asked, tears flowing down her face. “T-this isn’t a dream, is it?”

Pidge hiccuped. “No, Mom; it’s really us.” She said, beginning to cry. She wasn’t much of a crier, so to see her sobbing almost instantly at the sight of her loved one made Keith tense up.

Is that what love looked like? Unconditional motherly love?

“Where have you guys been? Nobody will tell me anything; the Garrison are all secretive a-and they said that Katie wasn’t even registered there but I'm sure that you were and-”

“Mom.” Matt softy interrupted. “We’re going to tell you what we can but we only have a little bit of time to do it, so first-” He stopped and rubbed his eyes, trying to keep himself from crying as well. “We want to tell you that we love you; we love you so so much, and while we haven’t been able to talk to you just know that we never stopped thinking about you.”

She rubbed her eyes, trying to stop the tears from cascading down her face.

“We’re helping people, Mom.” Pidge said, rubbing the tears off of her own face as well. “And we’ve made lots of friends; in fact…” Pidge pulled Allura and Coran into view. “This is   
Princess Allura and her Royal Advisor Coran; they’ve been taking great care of us.”

Their mother examined them for a moment until it seemed to click that she was looking at aliens. Everybody expected a freak out, but instead, she smiled. “Thank you, both of you, for taking care of my children.”

“It’s been our pleasure, but in all honesty your daughter and son have saved us much more than we have saved them.” Coran said. “You have quite impressive children. They’re heroes to many.”

“I’m glad you think so; they’re definitely my heroes.” She said, then frowned when her eyes landed on Shiro.

“Shiro Takashi? You’re alive…”

“Yes; hello, Mrs. Holt. It’s been far too long.”

She smiled. “It’s good to see a familiar face with my children.” She rubbed her eyes. “Please, tell me, what's been going on? Where are you all?”

“Space.” Pidge said. “See, um… at the Garrison I was trying to find out what happened to Matt and Dad and during my investigation I…”

Pidge and Matt continued explaining for twenty minutes. They told her about Voltron, their adventures, about all of their friends, and even Keith and his mysterious past and pregnancy. Instead of being freaked out or upset by all she was hearing she listened intently, laughed when it was appropriate and would cover her mouth fearfully when her children were mentioned in any dangerous situations.

“I’m so proud of you.” She said. “But you said that you have other people who need to call their families… just, promise that you guys will come home to me.”

“We will, Mom; as soon as we can, I promise.” Matt said, putting his hand on Pidge’s shoulder.

“We love you, Mom.” Pidge said, rubbing her eyes softly.

“I love you too;I love both of you so, so much. Take care of each other.”

“We will.” Matt said, and after a heartbreaking moment of silence he disconnected the call and Pidge quickly hugged him.

“We have to find Dad; we just have to.” She hiccuped. “We can’t go home without him; we just can’t.”

“We will, Pidge. I promise.” Matt kissed the top of his sister’s head. “If we can call all the way to Earth there’s no way we won’t be able to find him.”

 

Lance called his family next while Hunk gathered up the nerve to talk to his Grandmother, who had raised him. It was clear that Hunk respected his Grandmother but he was also obviously terrified of the woman. It was a little funny to see, and Lance would have laughed at it if he wasn’t just as worried to talk to his own family.

The screen flashed for a few moments before it came to life with the image of woman that looked incredibly similar to Lance. She sat there, looking confused for a moment before her gaze suddenly relaxed.

“Lance? Is that… really you?”

“Maggie!” Lance said, tears instantly flowing down his face. “Yes, its me!”

The woman, Maggie, who was likely Lance’s sister, suddenly looked over her shoulder and cried out. “¡Mamá! ¡Es Lance! ¡Lance está en la computadora! ¡Ven aquí rapido!”  
Thunderous steps could be heard, almost sounding like an earthquake quickly approaching, but instead of the house falling down around Maggie the door that was behind her suddenly burst open with not one person, but eight.

“¿Qué es ello, Maggie? Te escuchamos gritar y …” A woman with long brown hair pulled into a low ponytail began, but she trailed off when she saw the familiar face on the screen. 

“Lance?”

“Hola, mamá.” Lance said, rubbing his eyes.

“¡¿Dónde estás?! ¡¿Dónde has estado?! Han pasado dos años y todo lo que tienes que decir es ‘hola’? Usted nos ha tenido preocupados enfermos! ¡¿Qué te ha pasado?!” The woman yelled, sobbing loudly.

“Mama, please calm down!” Lance said. “I can explain it all to you, but you have to calm down. Please… I don’t have very long to talk to you. Hunk needs to call his family next.”

She calmed down, hugging the man who could only be guessed as Lance’s father.

“Hunk? That’s your friend that went missing with you, so… does that mean that the person named ‘Pidge’ is there too?” Asked a slender man with pale skin and curly brown hair. Likely a cousin or brother to Lance.

“Yeah… what did they tell you? I-I mean, what do you all know?” Lance asked.

The man and Maggie looked at one another before Maggie spoke up.

“They didn’t tell us anything except that you and a few other students went missing. We tried to get answers and nobody would tell us anything. Where are you?” Maggie asked again.

Lance laughed softly. “Man, do I have a story for you…” He said, his sights landing on the youngest two behind everybody. He looked so heartbroken at them. They had to be ten and eight by now, meaning he had already missed them growing up so much already.

Lance began explaining just like Pidge did, though he often had to be reminded to speed up the process so that Hunk could have his turn. Eventually the story was over and Lance pulled Keith over slowly.

“Now, everybody, this is Keith. He’s my boyfriend- mi novio…”

Keith looked down, embarrassed. He wasn’t embarrassed that Lance had called him his boyfriend; in fact, he was more embarrassed by the fact that he looked so different. Lance was dating a freak but Lance was so proud of it; he simply didn’t know how to feel about it.

“Why is he purple?” The little girl asked and Maggie shushed her.

“Normally he’s not, but we recently found out that he’s part alien. A really special type of alien that makes him purple sometimes. His eyes are purple all the time, and they’re beautiful.”

Keith blushed harder.

“But… that’s not the only thing special about him… Mama, you’re going to be an abuela. The type of alien Keith is allows him to carry babies…”

“Like a seahorse?” One of the kids piped up, one of the other kids shushing him.

It was quiet for a very long moment before Lance’s mother smiled. “I cannot wait to meet you, Keith. Please, continue taking care of our son.”

“Y-yes, M-m-ma’am; I will.” Keith said.

“Welcome to the family, Keith.” Maggie smiled.

That one sentence made Keith’s stomach flip. Keith had always considered the people on the ship as his family, but the fact that now there were people on Earth wanting him to be part of his family really scared him. He didn’t want to take Lance’s family away from him. He had made the conversation so awkward. He was so scared that he would hurt the people that he cared so much about.

“T-thank you.” Keith said, then backed off screen while Lance said his goodbyes. Once out of sight Keith turned and rushed out of the room, tears forming. He didn’t need to cry, not when everybody else was having such a good time with everything.

He didn’t need to ruin it for everybody.


	49. Authors Note... Again XD

Hey guys, sorry about not posting anything over the weekend. I spent it in Las Vegas and didn't have any internet, of course by the time I got home I was too tired to write/post anything so I just went to sleep. Hopefully I'll be able to post something either late tonight or tomorrow sometime.

Please, just give me a little bit more time while working on this. I'm still thinking about a sequel to this or maybe another Voltron story focusing on the main character of the show. It would be another one kind of like this but maybe a little darker or an AU of some kind XD I'm not really sure what I want to do yet. Except from sleep. God, I'm exhausted.


	50. Up and Down Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So to make up for the fact that it's been a few days since I posted a chapter I decided to make a long sin filled chapter XD There's a little plot but yeah I't mostly not XD Have fun and here ya'll go.

Keith slid down against a wall, wrapping his arms around his legs as he put his forehead against his knees. He was so tired, so upset. Everybody was so happy about their families and now Keith was invited to join Lance’s family? Starting a family with Lance was one thing; putting himself in the middle of his family was another thing altogether. He always messed up the families that he joined.

Every orphanage, every foster home, even his real home… wherever Keith went, he upset or hurt the people he cared about or the people that cared about him. He didn’t want to break up Lance’s family just because he was having Lance’s kid. Lance had such a big happy family waiting for him on Earth… would having a kid keep him away from his happiness and keep him trapped with him up in space?

“Maybe getting back together with him was a bad idea… I really don’t want to hurt him.” He mumbled to himself, looking at his hands. “I-I can’t hurt him but if we get too close… I could.”

“Keith?”

Keith jumped at Allura’s voice and quickly looked over at her, tears in his eyes. She frowned, sitting next to him before arranging her dress so that she was properly covered up.

“What is the matter?” She asked softly.

“I’m scared…” Keith rubbed his eyes softly. “Every family I’ve been in throughout my entire life has either ended with me hurting them or them hurting me. What if I hurt Lance’s family? What if I make it so that Lance’s family doesn’t like him anymore? W-what if something terrible happens and they blame me for it?” Keith hugged himself gently before Allura began rubbing his back.

“Keith, breathe. Please, you should know by now that after all you and Lance have been through together that nothing should be able to split you two up.” She promised. “But if you really feel this way you should talk to Lance about it. You two have to be able to talk to one another if your relationship is going to last.”

“I-I-I know you’re right… but…” Keith sniffled softly. “What’s the point of a lasting relationship if I’m only going to accidently pull him apart from his family in the future?”

“Keith, things are going to happen. It is simply the way life works. You can’t blame yourself for everything bad that happens… It’s not healthy, and honestly it’s more worrying for everyone around you to see you so down in the dumps… just know that we all love you, and that no matter what happens we will never abandon you.”

Keith looked down rather sadly. “T-thank you, Allura… It means a lot.”

“Don’t mention it.” She said, kissing the side of his head before getting up and taking a few steps. “By the way, Keith…”

“Yeah?”

“When you are further along in your pregnancy… I…. Coran and I have been working on something.” She blushed, glancing away. “So… do come see us in a week or two.”

Keith tilted his head softly. “U-um, okay. But y-you don’t have to do anything. I-I can handle it.”

“Nonsense, we want to. You’re a part of our family now, and this is something that we want to do.” She smiled, then walked away.

Keith blushed softly. It was still scary being part of a ‘family’, but maybe… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all.

 

That night was louder and full of more excitement than it had for a very long time. It was as though talking to their families had given everybody a bit of life inside of them. It was hard for Keith to understand but he didn’t mind too much; seeing his friends this happy made him happy. He watched and listened as his friends moved around and talked about their families and more about their pasts; even Coran and Allura were talking more about Altea than they ever had before.

Keith kept to himself as usual, eating the food quickly and quietly. The baby had began moving more and more since the call with Lance’s family. It was strange but Keith wasn’t going to question it too much; as long as the baby was healthy he didn’t really care too much, though the movement and already constant nausea only made feeling sick to his stomach more painful and obvious.

Lance, who was sitting next to him, reached over suddenly and touched Keith’s thigh, causing Keith to freeze and look over at Lance with a blush.

“Hey, Keith.”

“Yeah?” Keith said, unsure of what was going on.

“Did it hurt when you fell from Heaven?” He asked.

Keith blinked in confusion, looking around for any clue as to what Lance was talking about. “Um… what?” He asked softly.

Lance let out a chuckle. “It’s a pick-up line, Keith. I’m flirting with you.” He said. Keith felt his face warm up and his ears went down as he blushed.

“O-oh. Well… um… thanks?”

Lance kissed Keith’s cheek before pulling his hand off of Keith’s thigh gently. Keith had never really been flirted with before so he had no idea how to react to it, but some part of him definitely reacted to the situation. Keith pressed his legs together before looking at Lance, who smiled knowingly.

“Well guys, I think I’m going to go to bed.” Hunk yawned, rubbing his eyes. “It’s been a long, emotional day.”

“Indeed.” Allura said. “You could all use a long rest; please sleep in as much as you need to tomorrow. We will pick up training again the day after tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Princess Allura.” Shiro said. “We all appreciate it.”

Allura smiled and one by one the dining room emptied until it was just Keith and Lance alone.

Keith looked up at Lance, blushing before he looked away. He wanted to ask but he was too embarrassed to even say it. Not to mention he still felt a little hungry. It was all so frustrating.

“Keith, you okay?” Lance asked, running his hand up and down Keith’s leg, a wicked cat-like smile on his face. He knew what he was doing and yet he kept teasing him like this.

Keith pushed down a purr that began to rumble up through his throat. He tried to keep his composure as Lance began to draw circles on his inner thigh. The need made him get more and more frustrated the longer that Lance kept his hand there. After a long moment of everything mixing together he finally grabbed Lance’s wrist and with an embarrassed snarl, he grumbled,

“Either feed me or fuck me, but stop teasing me.” He snarled and Lance blushed softly.

“Sounds good to me.” Lance smiled, standing up suddenly before picking Keith up. “I think we’ll go with the second.”

Keith let out a squeak. All the bravery that had gone into his threat was now gone as he was carried down the corridor towards Lance’s bedroom.

Lance pushed the door open, walking in before kicking the door shut with his foot. Lance then carried Keith over to the bed and dropped him down onto the comfortable mattress. Keith’s hands fell by his head, his hair falling over his shoulders and his legs slightly spread. Keith felt like he looked ridiculous, but judging by the look Lance got on his face the person he loved didn’t think he did.

Keith looked away, blushing darkly as Lance flicked off the lights before climbing between Keith’s legs, gently pinning Keith’s wrists down to the bed. Keith looked back up at him as Lance kissed him. For a little while the kisses were soft and gentle, but after a while the kisses became more aggressive and more hungry. Keith wanted to touch Lance, wanted to touch himself, but the fact that Lance was holding him down only seemed to add to how Keith was feeling. He needed Lance; he needed him inside of him.

They pulled apart after a moment as Keith began to beg.

“Lance, p-please, hurry.” Keith moaned. “I can’t wait…”

“Just a little longer.” Lance promised, pulling Keith into a sitting position before pulling off the Galra’s shirt and tossing it to the corner of the room. Lance then began to kiss Keith again, his tongue licking Keith’s bottom lip before sliding into his slightly-open mouth, wandering around.

Keith moaned, distracted by the feeling as he felt Lance run his hands down Keith’s sides, heading in the direction of his pants. He wasn’t going to stop him, but he wasn’t going to watch. Lance knew how to take care of him, and so long as Keith listened and was patient he would get what he wanted.

Lance undid Keith’s belt, continuing to kiss him and distract his impatient lover. Lance gave Keith’s bottom lip a nibble before his right hand slid into the back of his pants and he grabbed the base of Keith’s tail.

Surprised at just how much pleasure this caused Keith pulled away with a gasp and grabbed onto Lance, who smiled teasingly at the reaction. He began to pinch and rub it between his fingers. Keith gasped and moaned, closing his eyes as he did all he could to keep himself silent. He hated how good it felt.

“S-s-stop…” Keith begged. “I-i-i-it feels too good. I-it’s too much…”

“Do you really want me to stop or do you just want me to get to the good part?” Lance teased with a smirk.

Keith groaned. “Damn it, L-Lance; you kno-know I don’t want you to stop. Just… please… more.”

Lance gave Keith’s tail a soft tug, something he often did to Keith’s hair, and he got the same kind of reaction: a deep, throaty moan. Keith trembled, clinging to Lance for a moment before Lance pushed Keith back down onto his back. He pulled off his t-shirt and threw it off and onto the floor where Keith’s shirt was resting. He then began to tug down Keith’s pants, unsurprised to see that Keith was hard; nor was he surprised when Keith covered himself up with his hands.

“Hey now.” Lance smiled, grabbing Keith’s wrists and pulling them away, holding them gently. “You’re beautiful; let me look at you.”

Keith looked away, his face dark with a blush and the tip of his ears just as dark. He wanted to question how Lance could think that he was beautiful, all purple and covered in fur, but seeing that until they started seeing each other that he flirted with anything that looked like a human or was something from a fantasy of his… he didn’t dare question it further. Maybe he was just into Furries… but would he still be into him when he was back to normal?

Keith gasped in pleasure when Lance pressed lube-covered fingers into his tight hole. Keith moaned, thankful the distraction from his depressed throughs as he clenched his fists, arching his back as Lance began peppering his chest with loving kisses.

“Is that okay?” Lance asked. “It’s not too much, is it?” He asked and Keith shook his head.

“I-it feels good.” Keith said.

“Do you want me to let your wrists go?” He asked, and Keith looked up slowly at his hands before looking back down into Lance’s bright blue eyes.

“A little… I want to be able to touch you. But this works too.” He said with a soft chuckle.

Lance smiled, letting Keith’s wrists go as he slid his hands down to Keith’s thigh, pulling his legs apart before using his now free hand to tug and play with the tip of his tail. Keith tensed up his back, unable to do anything more than covering his mouth and shuddering against the pleasure. It was all so incredible.

Lance began slowly thrusting his two fingers into Keith, making him moan against his hands. It felt good. Really good. Lance pulled his fingers apart, stretching him out. Keith didn’t understand how he was still so tight after having used that Olkari toy he had been given. Part of him was thankful for it, though; the tighter he was the more pleasure he was able to feel.

After a long moment Lance pulled his hand gently out of Keith’s abused hole before kissing his lower spine lovingly. Lance then rolled Keith onto his stomach and pulled up his hips, beginning to finger his lover yet again. In this new position Lance was able to reach deeper as well as stretch him out more evenly. Keith pushed his face into the sheets while he dug his nails into the soft comforter by his head.

Keith moaned, arching his back slightly as Lance slid in what felt like the fourth finger. He wasn’t surprised that the frustrating stretching was going faster than normal. Between how hard they had gone at it during the beginning, the massive toy he had used, and the fact that he learned how to relax his muscles back there it was easier to get through it all faster and they didn’t have to waste as much time on that aspect.

“Are you doing okay?” Lance asked and Keith nodded softly, wrapping his tail around the arm that continued to hold his hips in place while the other continued thrusting into him.

Keith moaned. “Y-yes, please don’t stop.” He said with a breathy moan. “It feels really good.”

“I’m glad.” Lance said, pulling his hand all the way out. Keith whined at the emptiness but didn’t move when the sound of Lance’s zipper going down echoed through the room. After a few seconds there was movement behind him, suggesting that Lance was stripping off the rest of his clothes. Keith expectantly held up his tail, thankful that he was gaining more control of it than he had when he had first gotten it.

The feeling of something warm and stiff against his entrance was welcome, and when Lance began to push himself in there was no pain. Extreme pleasure filled him as a purr rippled from his throat. It felt so good; so much better than any ‘toy’ could ever feel. There was something different that Lance provided that it couldn’t, a feeling deeper than words could explain. While Lance couldn’t reach as deep as the toy he seemed to be able to touch a part of him that nobody else had managed to, and Keith wasn’t going to have it any other way. This was how he wanted it, and this was how he hoped he would be able to enjoy it for the rest of his life.

Once Lance was fully inside of Keith he only gave him a few moments before he began to thrust slowly. Keith let out a deep moan. It felt good, but he wanted harder. He wanted Lance to wreck him, to pound into him as he continued to beg for more. Ugh, these thoughts were making him harder and harder; it was beginning to get painful. He wanted to touch himself, though he suspected that Lance wouldn’t let that happen.

“Lance… please… harder.” He gasped. “I don’t want gentle. I-I can’t have gentle… please, I need harder…”

Lance chuckled softly, doing as he was told as he gripped Keith’s hips, thrusting deeper and faster than he had done before. It was good; it was so good. Lance continued thrusting, holding tightly to Keith with his right hand while his left hand grabbed his tail and gave it a tug, making Keith moan loudly as he tried to muffle it in the pillow. “That better?” Lance asked and Keith nodded desperately. He was going to lose his mind. He knew he was. He was going to lose his mind and it was going to be Lance’s fault.

Keith brought one of his hands to his mouth, pressing hard against it as he moaned into it, his moans breaking slightly with every thrust. Pleasure-filled drool began to make its’ way to the corners of his mouth; he tried to keep himself quiet but just like the moans it kept spilling out.

“L-Lance; y-yes, l-like that.” Keith moaned, gasping as there was another tug on his tail. “D-deeper.”

Lance seemed to let out a purr this time as he wrapped the hip-holding hand around Keith’s chest, pulling him close into his embrace so that Keith was sitting on his lap, riding him. Lance didn’t falter, not failing to keep up with the constant speed as well as this new depth. Keith arched his back, now needing to use both hands in order to muffle his pleasured cries.

Keith was now able to hear that Lance was also moaning as well, clinging to his Galra boyfriend while kissing his neck lovingly.

“I’m going to cum, Keith; can I cum inside?”

“Y-yes… yes, cum inside. Please, please cum inside.” He gasped, then let out a choked cry as Lance did just that, filling Keith’s stomach with warmth that sent Keith over the edge as he too came.

Lance kissed his cheek and nuzzled Keith’s neck as they slowly came off of their high.

“Wanna go again?” Lance asked and Keith nodded.

“Yeah.”


	51. Sorry

Sorry guys, this next chapter is taking forever to write but I am doing my best, I promise!


	52. Authors Note. I'm alive I promise XD

Hey guys I am so so sorry for the lack of Chapters lately but between my Fiance's new job, my dad needing surgery, my parents possibly getting a divorce and the fact that I might be moving things have been crazy here.

I am still working on this, I write a little every day and while I'm currently struggling with idea's because of all this madness I haven't given up yet. I'll hopefully have a chapter posted this weekend but don't hold me on that, I'm doing my best I promise.

Thank you for being so kind to me and please just give me a little longer.


	53. Lazy Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I'm really sorry this chapter took so long. Between my fiance's work, possibly moving, and my depression kicking my ass... I'm just struggling... I'm really sorry.

Keith wanted to just stay like this forever, his head on Lance’s chest while Lance held him close, his arms wrapped around Keith’s naked frame. Keith’s tail swayed softly, his ears twitching slightly as he listened to the sound of Lance’s beating heart. Keith closed his eyes softly, letting out a gentle purr as he wrapped his legs around Lance’s thighs.

The baby kicked slightly, but the way it moved suggested that the baby was trying just as hard to get comfortable as Keith was. Lance hummed, softly rubbing up Keith’s back before he began running his fingers through Keith’s raven hair. Lance opened his eyes, looking around the room before kissing Keith’s forehead.

“Morning, beautiful.”

Keith blushed and buried his face against Lance’s chest. “Good morning.” He said quietly.

“How did you sleep?”

Keith moaned softly. “Great… you smell really good.” He yawned. “Can we just stay like this forever?”

“Well… Allura did give us the day off. We can do whatever we want for however long we want.” Lance smiled, looking at Keith seductively.

Keith blushed darkly before chuckling slightly. “As tempting as that is… I’m starving.” He said, his stomach growling as though proving his point.

“Yeah?” Lance smiled, then began to rub Keith’s stomach softly. “You hungry in there, little baby?” He asked, causing Keith to smile slightly. “What sounds good today, hmm? What do you want?”

“French toast with yogurt, bacon, french fries, Mozzarella sticks, and pepperoni pizza with extra cheese.” Keith hummed at the thought of all the food. “But honestly, anything will work.”

Lance laughed. “I’ll see what I can find.” He promised, wiggling out of Keith’s grasp before climbing out of bed. He began putting on clothes, either unaware or uncaring that Keith was watching him as his naked frame walked around the room gathering things.

Keith held his tail softly with a big blush as he examined Lance’s tan, slender frame. Since they had come up to space they had all gotten a lot of scars, but out of all of them Lance seemed to have the deepest one. It was the one on his back between his shoulder blades; it took up a large amount of his back, from his shoulders down to the top of his hips. It was from the day that Sendak attacked the Castle; it was upsetting to see that the explosion had done so much damage to him, but the fact that it didn’t have any long-term effects on Lance made Keith thankful.

Keith reached up, touching his right shoulder where his own deepest scar resigned. The Blade of Marmora kicked his ass and he had plenty of scars to prove it, but this one was easily the worst. He looked up at Lance again when he finished getting dressed before Lance flashed Keith a smile.

“I’ll be right back.”

“Okay.” Keith blushed, rubbing his stomach slightly as Lance left the room.

He knew the baby bump wasn’t supposed to form until around Week Nine, but he could already see a small amount of pudge at the bottom of his stomach. As wiggly as the baby had been, he wasn’t surprised that he was already getting a little bit of weight to him.

“Whelp, there goes my figure.” He said softly, rubbing the small bump. “But I think you’ll be worth it.”

He had met a few pregnant people in his life but none of them really stayed around long enough for him to actually learn what it was like for them. The few people on the street and one of the Foster Mothers he actually enjoyed were pregnant, though at the time he found it hard to understand what was actually going on. He didn’t understand then but now he knew why he couldn’t stay at that foster home. He was too loud and too reckless to be around a baby, newborn or unborn. It was too dangerous. He was too dangerous.

“So… are you a boy or a girl?” He asked, as though expecting to get an answer. “Or will you be transgender? Genderfluid? Will you even identify with a specific gender? What kind of person will you grow up to be? Will you like boys or girls? Or both? Oh god, I hope you don’t grow up to be a sex addict; those people always end up so hurt in the end.” Keith rolled on his side, facing the center of the room. “Actually, don’t be an addict at all. If you do, though, I hope that you’ll trust me or your dad enough to let us help you get out of it. We’ll try to be good parents, and I’m sure Lance will be… I’ll need some practice, though… I don’t know if you’ve noticed but I’m not really good at all of this stuff so far. I’ve never been around babies or young children and everybody my age doesn’t really like me….” He rubbed his stomach a little more, smiling when the baby kicked against his hand. “I hope you look like your dad. He’s beautiful… with his dark skin and those blue eyes. He’s perfect and I’m sure that you will be just as perfect.”

Keith jumped when Lance walked back into the bedroom with large tray full of food. The sight and smell encouraged Keith to quickly sit up and smile happily, his tail swaying with excitement. He could hardly make heads or tails of what was on the tray but he didn’t care too much; at the moment, he could eat anything.

Lance put the tray on Keith’s lap and the Galra happily dug into the food with his spork. “Thank you, Lance.”

“Anything for you, my love.” Lance smiled, kissing his cheek.

Keith blushed, filling his mouth with as much food as he could fit in hopes that it would keep hi from saying or doing something stupid. He hated to admit it but he secretly loved when Lance got super sappy with him, told him he loved him or gave him a silly nickname that made his heart race. He had never felt love like this, let alone love as strong as how he felt for Lance and what he could only hope Lance felt for him.

“Is that okay?” Lance asked. “I’m not as good as Hunk is but I did my best.”

“It’s great, Lance. Thanks.” Keith said between bites. “I really appreciate it.”

Lance beamed with pride. “Yay!” He cheered. “Anything to help.”

“Anything?” Keith smiled. Now he could work with that.

“Y-yeah. D-do you need anything else?”

“Um… well… I’d like a back rub after I eat.” Keith smiled.

“I can do that.” Lance said, happy yet again.

 

Lance pressed on Keith’s lower back, causing the Galra to moan and grunt softly. His lower back had been hurting him for the past few days, and while he knew why it was hurting so much he decided it was time to get it taken care of. If Lance found out he was keeping something from him, he would probably freak out on Keith. Lance seemed desperate to help in some way so Keith might as well let Lance do just that.

Keith hummed softly, feeling Lance’s soft hands run up and down his naked sides, the only thing between the two lovers being a thin sheet that was draped across Keith’s hips. That being said, it was hard for Keith to keep his head on straight when Lance was sitting on his thighs just under his butt, a familiar hardness pressing up against his backside. Keith knew that he was getting excited by the touch but he honestly hadn’t been expecting Lance to be getting just as excited by it.

Keith blushed darkly, burying his face in the sheets. Maybe if he ignored everything the feeling would go away? He had been able to do it before.

His plan would have worked if Lance hadn’t slid his hand up Keith’s sides again, this time sliding between Keith and the sheets as he began to rub and pinch Keith’s nipple. Keith moaned, closing his eyes tightly as he shuddered under the touch.

“L-Lance… w-wait, you don’t have to…”

“But I want to… is it not okay?”

“Lance, I’m pregnant. I’m always horny; if it’s not okay, then something's wrong. I just… I-I don’t want to exhaust you.”

“Exhaust me? Challenge accepted.” Lance said, beginning to kiss Keith’s spine.

 

“So what do you think everybody else is doing?” Hunk asked. “I mean, I saw Lance for a little while; he stocked up on a little of everything we had in the kitchen.”

Pidge chuckled. “Do you really want to know?”

“Uh… kinda? I mean, I want to know a little but not everything. Ew.” Hunk laughed. “I mean… it’s hard for me to stay out of everybody’s business when I’m lonely like this. I miss Shay…”

Pidge smiled. “I bet you do, Hunk. You know why? Because you looove her.”

“Yeah, I do…”

“Wow, you don’t even bother denying it anymore.”

“I don’t have to.” Hunk said. “I, um… I finally admitted it to her and I guess… to myself.” He rubbed the back of his head. “I’m thinking that when this is all over I’m going to live   
with her on the Balmara. I told my Grandma, and she said I’d have to introduce her but she already gave me her blessing…”

“That’s awesome, Hunk. You gotta send me crystals once you’re there.”

“I can do that… what about you? What are you going to do when this is all done?”

“After Matt and I find Dad, we’re going to take him home, but… I don’t know how long I’ll stay. After how much I’ve seen up here, I just want to learn more. I want to learn all I can about as many species of aliens that I can.”

“Is that your happy ending?” Hunk asked.

Pidge laughed. “I don’t know; maybe. I’m 17, Hunk; I have a long time to think about my happy ending.”

“True, true.” Hunk chuckled. “I’m hungry; do you want anything?”

Pidge looked at him. “No thank you, Captain Crunch.”

Hunk beamed with a smile before walking off, leaving Pidge alone with her thoughts yet again. Learning all she could; was that really her happy ending? Or would she be able to figure that out later, when she was older? Was there a time limit on these things?


	54. Birthday Drama

Four days later Keith’s birthday came around, and while Keith hated the thought of celebrating he couldn’t stop his friends from making a cake and readying a small party for him. No matter what Keith said about not wanting a party it went ignored and he was forced to be used an excuse to party. Part of Keith was upset that they refused to listen to him, but seeing everybody smiling and happy, he really couldn’t be too angry with all of them.

He put his head down on the table, watching as they made him a birthday cake with what they had available. It would be a weird alien birthday cake, but in space there wasn’t much they could do about it. Keith’s tail wrapped around his stomach, doing his best to comfort the child growing inside of him. It was almost as though the baby knew Keith was unhappy and it was unhappy as well.

“Keith, are you alright?” Shiro asked, rubbing Keith’s back.

“I’m fine. I just… I don’t understand why you guys are so insistent on having a party. It’s just another day; can’t we just ignore the fact that it’s my birthday? I really don’t want to celebrate.”

“I know… but, Keith… we all want to celebrate your birthday; maybe we can make it something that you can enjoy.”

“Well, you can’t.” Keith crossed his arms, the feeling of Bryce’s hands running over his body again. He shuddered, hugging himself. “Nothing can make this day enjoyable.”

“Well, we won’t know until we try.” Shiro smiled.

Keith wanted to yell at Shiro, to tell him to just give it up, but seeing everybody so happy made him not want to ruin it for everybody. He would stay for a little while and when the party got too crazy he would just go to the training hall or just go to his room and take a nap. He didn’t have to stay for a party that he didn’t even want. “Fine. Whatever.”

“Keith!” Lance jogged over with a smile, holding out a spoon. “Try this; it’s the frosting for the cake.”

Keith blushed but grabbed the spoon and licked it. “It’s good…”

“Yes! Okay, do you need anything?”

“No. I’m fine; just… tired.”

Lance frowned. “Okay… just let us know if you need anything, okay?”

“Yeah, I will.” Keith got to his feet. “I’m going to go to the Bridge.” He mumbled, then walked out of the room, waiting until he was alone in the hall before he began to rub his chest. It had been really sensitive since he had woken up. It didn’t make sense, and as far as he knew Galra didn’t have to deal with this problem. Though, he wasn’t exactly fully Galra either.

He put his hand against the wall, walking along, feeling the textures under his fingers. He needed to relax. Bryce wasn’t here. That had been one birthday; his worst birthday, granted, but he didn’t have the right to keep dwelling on it. It was in the past and his friends were happy to do this; shouldn’t he force himself to be happy for them?

He pulled out his Marmora Blade and smiled weakly at it.

 

“Happy Birthday, Buddy.” Keith’s father said, messing up his hair as he put a familiar blade in front of him.

“Woah! Cool!” Keith carefully took the knife. He had seen his father use it a few times in his training. It was so pretty with a glowing symbol on the handle. Keith had always gotten a familiar and welcome feeling from it. “T-this is for me?”

“Yep.” He smiled. “You’re a little young but I think it’s about time you have it. I’ll have to teach you how to defend yourself with it, but just remember to use it to protect yourself. I never want to hear that you started a fight in order to use this, okay?”

“Y-yes, sir!” Keith said. “I-I’ll take good care of it, I promise!”

“I know you will.” His father kissed his head. “Want some cake? It’s your favorite; Red Velvet.”

“Yes!”

 

Keith ran his thumb on the side of the blade and hummed softly. He wanted answers about his father; he wanted to know what happened to him. Pidge at least had some answers about where her dad went; he was kidnapped, but Keith had a feeling his father’s disappearance wasn’t that simple. He just wished he could remember more about what happened.

Keith put the knife back in his belt before walking towards the bridge of the castle, surprised to find that only the mice were there. Normally at least Coran was on the bridge checking on something, so for him to not be there only made Keith feel more guilty about not wanting to do this. Everybody was involved in this and if he said that he didn’t want it… everybody would be so disappointed.

Keith walked over to his chair and sat down, leaning back as he closed his eyes. It was quiet in here at least, so he would be able to relax until the others came looking for him. He was even beginning to consider taking a nap before the mice climbed on his stomach, causing him to open his eyes again.

The largest mouse had its’ ear against Keith’s stomach, seeming to listen, while the smallest seemed to be knocking, leaving the other two sniffing and pushing curiously. Keith wasn’t sure if this meant they understood that he was pregnant or if they had just seen Lance and Keith touch his stomach enough that now they were just curious. Keith smiled slightly, reaching forward and petting one of them gently. They were always so gentle; it made Keith curious to know just how much they actually understood about the situation.

Keith closed his eyes again, trying to relax. He needed to prepare himself for this party; he had to at least try to enjoy himself or he would break down in the middle of it. Maybe if he pretended it was somebody else’s birthday, it could work that way… wouldn’t it? If he pretended it was Lance’s birthday then maybe it wouldn’t be so bad… No, that was a stupid idea. If his friends found out that he was doing that they would only try harder to make him enjoy his birthday.

Maybe if he just pretended it was all a nightmare? Just went with the flow? That could possibly work, right?

The baby kicked, making the mice squeak loudly in surprise. Keith chuckled lowly, opening one of his eyes slightly, watching as the mice seemed to now look for a way to get in or get the baby out. They clearly didn’t understand; in a weird way it was adorable.

 

A few hours later the ‘party’ had really begun; Pidge had set up some speakers to play loud music from her phone, Hunk and Lance had set out more food than any of them would be able to eat, Allura and Coran set up lights, and Shiro had been in charge of making sure that Keith actually showed up. They hadn’t forgotten the birthday boy. What a shame.

Luckily Keith knew a lot of the songs that were playing, so while he hid in the corner eating he could hum along and watch as all his friends danced, though seeing Coran and Pidge dance together was easily the most hilarious part of it all. Keith didn’t want to dance, but that didn’t stop Lance from coming over after every song to try and convince him to change his mind.

“Come on, Birthday Boy, let’s dance!” Lance almost begged.

“Mr. Birthday Boy.” Bryce’s voice echoed, causing Keith to frown.

“No. Lance.” Keith said. “I don’t feel well enough to dance.” He said, poking around the food he had been stuffing his mouth with only moments ago. “Just, drop it, okay?”

“Keith… come on, it’s your birthday; try and have fun… please?”

Keith growled. “I didn’t ask for you guys to do this.” Keith said, his voice quiet.

“What?”

“I DIDN’T ASK YOU GUYS TO DO THIS!” Keith slammed his hands down on the table. “In fact, I told ALL of you that I didn’t want to celebrate!” He snarled, his ears down and his teeth bared. “I hate birthdays, especially my birthday! But no, none of you guys could listen to me! You guys just had to celebrate ‘for me’ while all I wanted was to not celebrate!” He swiped his hand over the table top, throwing the plate to the ground and shattering it. “I just wanted to sleep and ignore today! I don’t want to remember today! I don’t want today to exist! I don’t want to-” He gasped as pain shot through his spine and side. It was almost like a kick but much more painful, not to mention it just felt wrong.

“Keith?” Lance touched Keith’s shoulder but Keith harshly slapped it away.

“L-leave me alone. I’m going to bed.” He snarled, walking away while holding his side. He didn’t want attention. In fact, all he wanted right now was to be left alone.


	55. Pain and Panic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys so a little bit of an update! If I end up doing a sequel it won't be for a while after this one simply because I want to write a story about my real OTP for Voltron. It'll be a little darker than this one and be more violent but it'll be fun. I've already started working on it XD Anyways, I'm hoping to have this story done before December and start posting the new story when this one is done.  
> Anyways, I hope that you guys will read this new story as much as you guys read his, I really enjoy the comments <3

Keith sat on his bed, curled up with the blanket tightly around him. His stomach hurt, his head hurt, he felt like he was going to throw up all he had just eaten but at the same time it was almost like his stomach wasn’t going to give. His chest was tight as though there was something heavy sitting on it, stopping him from taking in a full breath of air. It took him a few moments to realize what was happening, but when it hit him he knew there was nothing he could do but suffer through it.

A panic attack.

Of course he was having a panic attack, because he couldn’t go a day without something like this happening to him. It was just too much to ask for.   
Keith covered his ears, curling into a tight ball as he hiccuped slightly. It was all so much. He was being too dramatic; he needed to calm down. He couldn’t let the others see him like this. He couldn’t let them see him falling apart. He couldn’t be a burden to his team; they didn’t need to worry about him. He could   
handle this on his own. He had done it before; he could do it now.

Breathe, dammit, breathe!

Keith hiccuped, his breath coming in short and sporadic shudders. It hurt to breathe; not a physical hurt but an emotional hurt that was hard if not impossible to explain to anybody who had never experienced a panic attack. His head throbbed, feeling as though it was trapped in a vise; his heart was racing but it also didn’t feel as though it was beating at all. His stomach twisted into knots, only making the panic and the pain worse. He tried to calm himself down, but he was drowning in the negative thoughts that were doing all they could to ruin his day.

You’re a disappointment.

Failure.

Mistake.

Halfa.

Freak.

You’re not Galra and you’re not Human; just what the fuck are you?!

Nobody really loves you.

It’s all an act.

They don’t care about you.

You’re just an excuse to spend time together; they don’t even care that you’re not there. 

You should just leave.

Kill yourself.

Nobody wants you here.

Just get out of the way.

You’re a burden.

“Keith?”

Looking up at the person who called his name, Keith felt tears begin to flow down his face. Shiro and Lance were standing in front of him, both looking extremely worried about him.

They know.

They all can see just how weak you are.

You’re being a burden.

What a mistake.

“What do we do?” Lance asked.

“I’ll get him some water; talk to him. But don’t touch him without asking, okay? Sometimes touching is the worst thing we can do for a person having a panic attack like this.”

“R-right.” Lance nodded, watching Shiro leave before he gave Keith a gentle smile. “Hey, babe. What’s going on?”

“N-n-n-n-nothing. I-I-I-I-” Keith couldn’t form words, and the harder he tried to speak the more fearful he got.

“Okay, okay; shhh, don’t talk. You don’t have to force yourself to talk to me… can I hold your hand?”

Keith hesitated for a second before reaching out and holding onto one of Lance’s fingers with his trembling hands. Even that felt like it was too much, but Keith knew that he was freaking Lance out, and if this was the only way he could reassure him then he would have to deal with it. 

“There you are. Now, just focus on your breathing. Slow in, slow out. You’ve got this babe; I believe in you.”

Keith slowly nodded, doing as he was told and trying to keep his mind off of the thoughts as he did what he could to breathe. This wasn’t good for him or the baby; he needed to calm down before his own useless fears and anxieties hurt the baby growing inside of him.

“Deep breath, okay? Just try to relax.” Lance said as Shiro ran back in, handing him a glass of water.

“Here you go, Keith. Try to just sip it, okay?”

Keith hiccuped. “O-okay; I-I-I can do that.”

“Yes, you can.” Shiro said, then smiled at Lance. “Lance, why don’t you sing us some of your favorite songs?” Shiro said, doing all he could to make sure that Keith was distracted and that his mind was on anything but the panic that was slowly letting him go.

“Um, sure.” Lance thought for a moment before he began singing Despacito, a song that made Shiro groan and Keith let out a slight chuckle. It wasn’t really Lance’s favorite song, but in the situation it was the only thing he could think of to sing, not to mention it was one that Keith could hum along with.

“What started this attack?” Shiro asked. “So we can avoid it from happening again.”

“I-I really, really don’t like my birthday. I-I… I tried to deal with it, but… it’s just too much. The last birthday I enjoyed was the last one I had with my dad… after that, they were either forgotten or something bad happened on them… Shiro… t-the night you and I celebrated in the Garrison…” Keith put his head on Lance’s shoulder while Shiro put his hand gently on the top of Keith’s hand. “I was attacked by Bryce… he forced me into a closet and tied me up.”

The look that came on Shiro’s face was a sign that he already didn’t like where this was going. “Keith?”

“H-he tried to rape me…” Keith forced out, and Lance stopped humming instantly. “I-I-I managed to put up a fight but instead of letting me go he just beat me up.” Keith nuzzled against Lance’s neck. “I-If he had actually-” He choked on his tears, trying not to start panicking again. “I could have gotten pregnant back then.”

Lance and Shiro looked at each other, as though finally understanding why Keith hated his birthday. If something like this happened every year on the same day they’d hate that day too; the fact that it just so happened to be the day he was born… Keith had to feel like he was only born to be in this constant state of pain.

“Keith, I’m so sorry.” Lance frowned sadly. “I-I didn’t know.”

“None of you did.” Keith said. “I-I wanted to keep it that way, but… i-it just got too painful to keep it in any longer.” Keith let himself be hugged, the warmth relaxing him. He wouldn’t be able to stay in their grasps for long, but for the moment at least it was more than welcomed.

“It’s okay, Keith. Now that we know we won’t force you to go back out.” Lance promised. “You and I can just stay in here for the rest of the day if you want to.”

Keith nodded quickly and rubbed his nose. “Y-yeah… I-I’d like that a lot more than going out and facing everybody.”

Lance kissed Keith’s head. “Okay. I’m going to go get some food; do you want cake or anything?”

“Y-yeah… cake sounds good.” Keith admitted.

“Alright, I’ll be back in just a little while. Will you be okay alone for a few minutes?” Lance ran his fingers through Keith’s hair.

“I think so… just try to hurry, please.”

“I will, babe.” Lance promised, then got up and with a small gesture towards Shiro the two left the room, leaving Keith with a new, more relaxed feeling brushing through him.

Telling the truth had been hard, but now that his friends knew he felt much better about it all. Though, his friends knowing the truth also brought up a new type of fear: being judged or looked down on because he had gotten so close. He knew that neither of them were really that type, but it was still scary to think of. The last thing he wanted to do was lose his two best friends.

 

“I should have known…” Shiro said softly, leaning against the wall as he ran his fingers through the white puff of hair that hung in front of his eyes. “Damn it, why didn’t I know?”

“Nobody knew, Shiro; you heard Keith… he never told anybody. He never even told me…” Lance looked down at his feet as he hugged himself. “It was another one of those ‘I can’t burden others with this’ situations…”

“But I should have figured it out.” Shiro said, a hint of a growl in his voice. “He’s my best friend…”

Lance rubbed his eyes. “We can’t focus on that right now.” He said. “And we shouldn’t let Keith focus on it either; it’s clearly hurting him and we should try to keep his mind off of it… at least until the baby is born. This much stress… it’s not good for either of them.”

Shiro nodded, rubbing his temple slightly. “You’re right… okay, um, go get some cake and stuff for Keith. I’m going to try and calm myself down; maybe tell the others that the party is over. God, I knew this was a bad idea… I should really learn to listen to Keith; he always has a reason for doing what he does.”

Lance gave a timid smile. “I guess that’s just something I’m going to have to learn about him…”

Shiro rubbed Lance’s back. “You’re doing great, Lance.” He promised, then walked off.


	56. Rescue

Two days later things finally seemed back to normal. Well, as normal as it could be with Keith’s pregnancy. It had been going smoothly so far, and while Keith felt sick because of his higher body temperature he refused to just sit and do nothing. It was hard not to do anything; he was a fighter and he needed to do something. Hell, anything would work at this point. Luckily he didn’t have to wait long before he got his chance.

“What is that?” Hunk asked as they all looked out the window at what looked looked like a destroyed ship. “A space donut?”

Keith couldn’t help but grin; he had been thinking the same thing looking at the ship. It was a big donut-like shape, and while the hole in the center seemed like it was actually part of it the smaller, spread-out holes were not.

“I can’t find any information on it.” Pidge said with a frown. “Not even the Marmora know what we’re looking at.”

“What do we do?” Shiro asked, looking at Allura. “If this was a recent fight, there could be people on there who need our help.”

Allura thought for a moment. “Without knowing exactly what we’re walking into, as well as the fact that not even the Blade of Marmora know what this is, it could be highly dangerous to send all of the Lions at once… Pidge, you take the Green Lion and head inside to get a scan of the building. Keith, you follow with the Red Lion as back-up; if Pidge gets into trouble the Red Lion is powerful enough to get her out of it. Once we know what we’re dealing with, we’ll be able to figure out a plan of action from there.”

“Maybe I should go.” Lance said, “We’re not as fast as Red but-”

Keith frowned. “I’ll be fine, Lance; it’s a simple mission and you’ll be here if anything happens.” Keith tried to keep calm, but it was clear he was frustrated by   
Lance cutting in with his overprotectiveness.

“I just worry…” Lance said.

“I know you do. But don’t worry so much; it’s annoying.” Keith grumbled. “Come on, Pidge; let’s go.”

 

-You could be a little nicer to him, you know.- Red said as they followed the Green Lion and Pidge. -He’s just trying to protect you and your cub.-

“I know he is, but after so long it just gets annoying.” Sighed Keith. “I’ve always been alone, so to suddenly have people care about me… ugh, it’s annoying. And it’s not even like they care about me… I feel more like they’re just being protective over me because there’s a baby. Not because it’s me…”

-Keith, you and I have had this conversation more than once. Your team loves you, just as I love you. Please, Keith, try to relax and not doubt yourself so much.-   
Red said, and Keith jumped slightly when Pidge spoke up.

“Alright, the scans are showing what looks like 8 life-forms on the ship.” Pidge said, “Six are moving around but two aren’t… from the thermal scans it doesn’t   
look like those two are alive anymore…” Pidge said with a frown. “What do we do, Shiro?”

“We’re on our way, but if the others are wounded or if there’s a chance that those two are alive then we need to take the chance and try to save them. Get in there and save who you can, both of you.” Shiro ordered. “Be safe; we don’t know what we’re about to go into.”

“Sounds like a good idea; we’re going in.” Keith said, driving Red towards the donut-shaped ship, Pidge and the Green Lion close behind them. It only took a few seconds before the two Lions landed on the ship, letting the two Paladins out of them.

Keith grabbed Pidge’s hand as they flew through space, using their jetpacks to drive themselves forward into one of the holes in the side of the ship. Keith looked around for a long moment before the two of them split apart.

“You go that way.” Keith pointed to the left. “I’ll go this way, and whatever survivors we find we take to the Lions.” Keith said. Pidge nodded and flew in the direction he had pointed.

“Why are you guys separating?!” Hunk yelled. “Have you guys never seen scary movies?! That’s how people get killed!”

“There’s not enough time for us to go all the way around the ship.” Keith explained. “If we do it this way we can travel twice the distance and get to them all faster. It’s the best way, and while it sound like a bad idea and might end up being one it’s the one we’re going with.” Keith said, then frowned. He was sounding like he was their leader again, bossing them around and doing all he could to make sure they were safe. It was a hard habit to get out of, but it was one that only seemed to get worse with time rather than better.

“Be safe; when we get to you we’ll all split up and join you.” Shiro said, “Keith, if there’s any threat…”

Keith growled slightly. “Yeah, I know. I’ll be careful; don’t treat me like a damsel in distress. I’m fine!”

“I was going to say ‘take them out’, but good to know.” Shiro said with a chuckle and Keith blushed slightly.

Keith landed lightly, looking around for any sign of life. “Hello! Is anybody here?! Do you need help?” He called. He knew he was getting closer to one of the stronger signals, suggesting somebody was alive, but it was worrying that he couldn’t see anybody around him. The signal had to be made by something, right?

Keith took a few steps, holding his hand near his bayard. If anything happened then he would be ready to fight back. Something was wrong; the fur on his tail and ears was standing on end as he looked for any movement. For the longest moment there was nothing until somebody slammed against him and pinned him against the wall.

Keith grunted in pain, trying to form his bayard but he simply couldn’t reach it anymore. He looked up at the person holding him and froze. “Rolo?”

“Keith?” Rolo relaxed, letting Keith go before looking him over. “What happened to you?”

“I’m part Galra… apparently this is what I look like this time of the year.”

Realization seemed to strike and Rolo went pale. “You’re an Omega?”

Keith frowned, remembering the plant monster that had attacked him a few weeks ago. Would Rolo do the same? “Yeah, I am…”

“You can’t be here.”

“Why not?”

“Nyma is an Alpha of her species.” He began. “A species that is dying. The smaller the population of her people the more aggressive she becomes…. My point is,   
if she finds you here she’s going to hurt you. It’ll be even worse if you’re already pregnant.”

Now it was Keith’s turn to go pale. “What if I am?”

“Then she’ll do whatever it takes to kill the baby and keep you alive.”

Keith frowned. “Did you guys hear that?” He asked over the communicator.

“We heard it. Keith, you need to get out of there. Right now.” Shiro said.

“But what about the other survivors?” He looked at Rolo. “Where is your ship?”

“Gone; we came upon this wreckage and it ended up being a trap. We were looking for parts and while the ship was unattended a group of people waiting knocked me out and took off in it. I’m guessing that’s what happened to most of the people in this ship.” Rolo rubbed the back of his neck. “Looks like we might need to catch a ride with you guys.”

Keith scowled. He knew that was probably what would happen, but after hearing about Nyma just now as well as Rolo’s past of stealing the Lions, he wasn’t sure how much he could actually trust him. “I’m taking Rolo to the Red Lion, then to the Castle. You guys be careful.”

“You too, Keith. Don’t let your guard down; who knows what they could be planning?” Pidge said.


	57. Vampire's On Board?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long to get out you guys, I've been... really depressed and it's just getting worse. I write when I can as much as I can and I'm still doing my best to push through this story. There's probably going to be a big jump here in a few Chapters but you guys can expect at least ten more chapters of this story until we reach the end. I'm still debating between a second story to this or another story all together. I'm not sure on that though, so just be patient and I'll let you know by the end of this story what my plans are.

The ride back to the ship was more than a little awkward. The last time Keith had seen Rolo they had spent a passion-filled night together, and if it hadn’t been for the protection they used Keith could have easily gotten pregnant. Keith hadn’t felt anything for the alien and had just fallen into an emotional state when he let his hormones take over and let Rolo sweep him off his feet. He was unsure if Rolo felt the same way, but he could only hope that the alien didn’t feel anything for him.

Another thing that he was hoping was that Rolo kept his mouth shut about it. The last thing Lance needed was to know that he had sex with an alien that was going to be staying with them until they figured out what to do with him, on top of the fact that Nyma was an aggressive Alpha who, from how Rolo was making it out to sound, was willing to do whatever it took to kill the baby and get him pregnant with her child. It was a little worrying.

“So… have you always looked like this and you were just really good at hiding it?” Rolo asked as the Red Lion approached the Castle.

“No.” Keith shook his head. “The way I looked when I met you is how I really look. This is just the way I look during my mating season… I guess.” He shrugged.

“So you’ll turn back when you have the baby?”

“I guess? Honestly, none of this has ever happened to me before. I haven’t the slightest clue about what to do or how to feel.” Keith sighed gently, rubbing the back of his neck.

“But… you don’t just turn Galra.” He said with a chuckle. “So what the hell happened?”

“I don’t know. I just woke up one morning during the first day of my mating season and I started turning purple. I mean, we found out a few months ago that I was Galra but I never really looked like one, until now. I also found out that I now have Galra strength and senses. It’s… strange.”

-Keith, why are you telling him this?- Red asked. -Are you sure he can be trusted?-

Keith instantly pressed his lips together. She had a point. They had made love, that was true, but it was simply because Keith was lonely and emotionally hurt over things that he couldn’t remember anymore. Other than that the only thing he knew about Rolo was that he and Nyma had stolen the Blue Lion and given away their plans to save Shay and the Balmera. Everything he did know… was bad.

Rolo smiled, patting Keith’s shoulder softly before letting out a soft chuckle. “Well, this could be a good thing for many reasons, but I hope you’re happy, Keith.” Rolo said, making Keith looked down with a blush.

He didn’t have any feelings for Rolo; he knew this, but for some reason Rolo knowing so much about him was frustrating. There was also the fact that Lance had no idea of the night he had spent with Rolo. Hopefully he could keep it a secret, but situations like these always found their way to the light whether he wanted it or not.

Red pulled into the Castle, letting out a frustrated growl as she sat down, letting Keith and Rolo out but not before warning Keith.

-Watch yourself, Keith. I do not have a good feeling about this.-

Keith nodded at her, giving her a gentle smile as he then walked away while Rolo followed him closely. Keith would keep an eye on him; from the sounds of it he was the least dangerous out of the entire group they were bringing back to them, though.

 

It was Shiro who ended up finding Nyma, who seemed to be helping a wounded alien around the destroyed ship. She was clearly surprised to see him but there was also a look of thankfulness in her eyes. She didn’t look any more dangerous than the last time they had seen her, but between what she had already done to them as well as what Rolo said, Shiro knew better than to let his guard down. He needed to protect Keith as well as the rest of his friends. He didn’t want anybody getting hurt or anybody being betrayed because they let their guard down around them again.

“What are you doing here?” Nyma asked and Shiro smiled weakly.

“It’s good to see you too, Nyma.” He said, “We’re here to help you. We’re taking everybody onto our ship. Rolo is already there with one of our members.”

Nyma raised a brow ridge. “You would really let us onto your ship? After what we did?”

“Everybody deserves a second chance. Besides, we’re Paladins of Voltron. It’s our job to help everybody no matter what they’ve done in the past.”

Nyma nodded. “Alright, then. Lead the way.”

 

The look Allura had on her face when they got everybody to the ship was obviously one of distrust and frustration. She didn’t even seem to put any effort into trying to keeping herself calm. Though with what she had heard over the coms as well as the history they had with Rolo, they weren’t really surprised. The other aliens they had found all seemed to be vampire-like aliens. They had extremely long and sharp ears with rows of shark-like teeth in their mouths, long fingers, and a slender frame. They looked terrifying but at the same time they seemed to be very sweet, which brought an entirely new meaning to judging a book by its’ cover.

“What is that ship?” Allura asked, her arms crossed. “We cannot find any information on anything that shape.”

The leader of the vampire group let out a soft sigh. “That is because our mission is classified. We were hired by a group of Galra to rescue their Omegas from a prison.” He rubbed the back of his neck.

“Prison? I thought Omegas were able to live how they wanted, so long as they were with their Alphas.” Coran said, his eyes drifting to Keith, who tensed up.

“Normally, yes. However, a group of races have been capturing Galra Omegas in order to raise their own populations; they’ve been putting them into Concentration Camps. The Omegas who refuse to surrender and keep fighting for their freedom are tortured until their spirit is broken.” A female vampire alien said. “So we keep everything we do a secret and do what we can to save them from their fate…” She looked at Keith. “I see that you have an Omega yourself; did you save him as well?”

“No.” Lance said. “He’s part of our team; we only recently found out that he’s an Omega.”

“How lucky. I am glad that he is currently safe.” The male said. “I hope that he stays that way.”

“Your race… you won’t try to hurt him, will you?” Allura asked, making the woman shake her head.

“No. Our mating season comes once every twenty years, so he will be safe for at least another five.” She smiled. “However, from what I’ve learned from the people who have hired us as well as what I experienced for myself, this male Omega you have… he would be a ‘prize’.”

“What would make me a prize?” Keith asked, his arms crossed. “I’m nothing special…”

Lance looked at Keith, feeling nothing but love for him. He could see that Keith was special, but it was still so sad that Keith couldn't see it.

“Oh, you’re highly mistaken. You're slender with just enough muscle to make you look as though you could put up a challenge to some. Your fur is shorter than most and very soft-looking, and your ears and tail are long and fluffy at the end. That suggests an Eastern Galra descent. The Eastern Galra are a rarer race of Galra, not because of their numbers but rather because of their beauty and power… Those facts as well as the fact that you seem to be a spirited warrior… it’s spectacular to someone looking for a Galran Omega.”

Keith looked away, his ears going down as a blush softly dusted his cheeks as though he was frustrated with what was being said. Yet another problem he would have to deal with. The idea of being enslaved… for some reason that was scarier than anything else he had possibly had to deal with before. He didn’t understand why it was so scary, but he really didn’t want to have to deal with the possibility of it.

“Can you at least tell us exactly whom your employer is?” Allura crossed her arms, obviously frustrated with the lack of answers she was getting from the other alien race.

The man shook his head. “No; I am sorry, but half of the time we don’t even know them until we are delivering their loved ones back to them. They prove they know them with the use of photographs or drawings in their likeness.”

“So it’s not one employer?” Pidge frowned. “You’re making it sound like you guys take jobs from a lot of Galra.”

“Not just Galra.” The woman said. “Races of all kinds, from all over the galaxies. It just depends on the price.”

“But you said Galra Omegas.” Lance frowned, obviously confused.

“There are interspecies relationships. You of all creatures should know that; this Omega is obviously yours.”

Lance and Keith both blushed while Pidge chuckled softly.

“Busted.” She smiled.

“I see…” Allura frowned. “That makes sense, I suppose… Well, I’m thankful for what you are all doing.”

“No problem. We’re doing it for the money, so it’s not like we’re saints or anything.” The woman chuckled. “But… slavery is not something we particularly like seeing.”


	58. The Galra Prince

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, so I decided to try and get this chapter out today. Not because I wanted to write but because I felt bad for not posting anything for a while. My Great Grandmother/one of my best friends passed away on Tuesday and her Funeral is this weekend so I'm going to that. I'll try and keep writing but I need some time to grieve. I'm sorry.

Shiro and Hunk watched as Nyma and Rolo filled their mouths full of food. They way they were acting was like they hadn’t eaten for weeks. He wanted nothing more than to go onto the deck with the rest of the team, but he knew that he had to keep an eye on Nyma. She was clearly dangerous enough for Rolo to warn them about her; one of his own friends. Still though, there were so many questions rushing through Shiro’s head that he couldn’t even start to gather them all together.

Where was their little robot that they had before? What were they hoping to scavenge from the wreckage? What was on the ship that the other aliens went so far to protect? Two of their kind died trying to protect whatever it was… perhaps the rest of the team would know after the meeting, but for now all Shiro could do was babysit these two.

“Can I have more?” Nyma asked, licking her lips softly and Hunk smiled slightly.

“Of course.” He said, sounding a bit more aggressive than normal. He grabbed another bowl of food, putting it down in front of her.

“So…” Shiro began. “How have you guys been? We haven’t heard anything about you guys in a long time.”

“Trying to keep out of trouble. You guys started quite the mess when you took down Zarkon,” Nyma said. “His commanders are out for blood and people are looking to his son to take over the throne.”

“Zarkon has a kid?” Hunk asked in surprise.

“Yeah. His name's Lotor and he’s the only kid Zarkon ever had. He surrounds himself with a bunch of female half-Galra generals. From the rumors we’ve heard he’s a lot different than Zarkon, but he’s just as dangerous when he wants to be.” Rolo explained. “Until Lotor takes over, though, it’s a fight for all Galra to prove who is the strongest and who should lead the Galra race to fight you guys. They’re gathering as many people as they can to make an expanded army to take you down. Not to mention there are bounties on all your heads. Especially you and Red.” He pointed his spork towards Shiro. “I don’t know what you two did to piss everybody off but they’re not wanting to play nice.”

Shiro had a few guesses, but the biggest one he had and the most likely of all things was the fact that Keith could drive the two most powerful lions; the Black Lion and the Red Lion both listened to him and let him drive them. If the Galra knew this there was no way that they wouldn’t try to exploit it. There was also the fact that if they found out about Keith being a Galran Omega, it would only add to the danger that his friend would be in.

Hunk seemed to understand what Shiro was thinking and frowned. “We’ll be fine.” Hunk said.

 

That night the remaining vampire-like aliens they had found on the ship left the healing pods, each one more distressed by the fact that some of their friends died as well as the fact that all the Omegas they had saved had been taken yet again. Shiro also didn’t take the news of everything that had happened very well. He had been held hostage by the Galra and was used as a weapon, but even Shiro understood that what he went through could have been a lot worse.

“Are you alright, Shiro?” Keith asked, causing Shiro to look at him with a frown. “You’ve been staring off into space…”

Shiro forced a smile. “I’m fine… where is Lance? I thought I told him not to let you wander around by yourself.”

“Shiro, breathe; he’s getting me food. Besides, Hunk and Pidge are keeping an eye on Nyma and Rolo. Allura has our other Alien Guests busy and taken care of… I’ll be fine.”

Shiro’s smile faded as he looked towards the ground with a sigh before reaching over and messing up Keith’s hair. “I just worry about you. Hearing what those people went through… what you could be going through… I worry. You’re my best friend… my brother… I would hate to see you get hurt.”

Keith smiled gently. “It’s not that I don’t appreciate you worrying about me; I do… I just... “ He shrugged. “I don’t do very well with the touchy-feely stuff most of the time…”

“I know.” Shiro smiled. “You’ve been doing really well; the way you’ve opened up to Lance… I’m really impressed.”

Keith rubbed the back of his head with a blush. It was too much when somebody praised him; he didn’t know how to feel when somebody was actually proud of him. It was so different than what he had gotten used to while going through his life.

“It’s hard.” He admitted. “I don’t like feeling trapped and this pregnancy… all I’m really feeling is trapped. I’m dizzy and weak and I know you guys are just trying to make sure I don’t get hurt or anything but it’s just making it worse.”

Shiro frowned. “Okay… then how about we compromise? I’ll try to make sure that I’m not as overprotective and maybe see if the others will relax too… and we’ll give you about an hour all to yourself without checking in on you. You can do what you want as long as you’re careful… If we can all handle that, then… maybe we can up the time you spend alone.” Shiro chuckled.

“Great, so I’m on house arrest now?” Keith said, only half joking.

“No- I mean-” Shiro shook his head. “I know you can handle yourself; everybody knows you can… but it’s going to be hard for us not to worry about you, especially now that we know Galran Omegas are being captured and locked up… the more we learn about the Galra- about you, the more we worry. Lance worries the most. We do what we can to keep ourselves in check but it’s hard.”

Keith thought for a moment, but nodded. “Right… okay. I can do that. I think an hour alone would be good. Can I choose when it is? I mean, does it have to be at the same time every day?”

“Of course not.” Shiro smiled. “Anytime you need the time you can take it. But just give us a heads-up to tell us when you’re taking it and where you’re going to be, at least until our guests are gone and we don’t have to worry about you getting caught alone with any of them… I still don’t trust Rolo or Nyma as far as I can throw them.”

Keith eye’s narrowed. They often got onto the same page when it came to their instincts. “You think they’re up to something?”

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that we met them again. They’ve tried something like this before, so we shouldn’t let our guard down around them. Especially not you, Keith.”

“Not a problem… hey, Shiro?”

“Yeah?”

“You didn’t… you didn’t tell Lance about what happened the first time we met them… did you?”

“You mean how you ran off with Rolo because you were jealous that it was Nyma hooking up with Lance and not you?”

Keith’s face began to heat up, his ears went down and his tail wrapped around himself. “S-shut up, Shiro.”

Shiro laughed, putting his hand reassuringly on Keith’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Keith. That’s a secret I think all of us are going to keep. If you want Lance to know you’re going to have to tell him yourself.”

“Thank you, Shiro. I don’t think I’m going to tell him; at least not until Rolo is gone. I don’t need Lance trying to be all ‘top dog’ around me.”

Shiro nodded. “I understand. The only person you really have to worry about spilling the beans is Rolo himself…”

Keith looked down at his feet, the look on his face suggesting that he hadn’t thought about that. Keith was smart, but he had a lot on his plate; Shiro couldn’t blame him for that.


	59. Hunger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to do my best and write another chapter... I'm still struggling but because Season 4 is coming out in a few hours I thought this would be the perfect time to get something out there. I'm not sure when the next chapter will come out, but I promise that I"m doing my best. I just still need a little bit longer to deal with everything that is going on.  
> Thank you all so much for understanding.

The next day everybody had breakfast together, which included the Vampire Aliens, Rolo, and Nyma. It was more than a little frustrating, but they all decided it was too much work for Hunk to make two of each meal each day. It was a little more dangerous this way, but it was also easier. About fifteen minutes into breakfast, though, they realized that Rolo had been telling the truth about Nyma.

She and Keith were sitting on opposite sides of the table, but she was still sniffing slightly and looking around until her eyes landed on Keith. Her pupils seemed to turn into slits and Keith put his ears down with a glare. There was plenty of people between her and him, not to mention the fact that he could defend himself without any problems. Keith kept his hand near his Marmora blade as he ate breakfast with his other hand.

“So how far along are you, young Paladin?” A young Vampire Cadet asked. He didn’t look much older than Pidge, but he was easily taller than Hunk.

“Huh?” Keith glanced at him but didn’t let down his guard. “Oh, um… just over seven weeks. I got a book on Galran pregnancies, and according to that I’m still in the easy stage of it. Week nine is when it will be more of a pain than it has been. I’m at the point in my pregnancy that most species won’t even try to come at me… but I know that doesn’t apply to everybody.” He glared at Nyma, who seemed to be growling slightly, not at what he had said but more of the fact that she was ‘hungry’.

Lance and Shiro both seemed to be aware of the fact that both Nyma and Keith were on edge, but they did their best to keep quiet and not draw any more attention to it than it needed. Keith cleared his throat slightly, looking at Shiro.

“I think I’m going to spend my hour alone after breakfast; I need to check on Red and do some training.” He said, making Lance frown slightly.

None of them really liked the idea of Keith being alone, but they also knew that he needed it.

“Sounds like a plan.” Shiro smiled, then looked over at the Vampire Aliens.

“We’ve prepared a small ship for your departure.” Allura spoke up. “If you wish to take it.”

“Yes, thank you.” The leader said. “We will be out of your way as soon as possible. Thank you so much for your assistance.”

“Think nothing of it.” Coran said.

“Coran is right. It is our job to help anyone in need, even strangers.” Allura smiled, sliding a small communicator to them. “So if you ever need our assistance again, don’t hesitate to contact us. We will come as quickly as we possibly can.”

“Thank you again. We will be sure to spread the word of Voltron and tell of how you have helped us these past days. Please, if anything happens where the tables are turned we will do whatever we can to help you as well.” The male leader said.

Keith rubbed his stomach as it let out a gentle growl, suggesting that the baby wasn’t enjoying the food today. He gulped down the nausea before pushing his plate away. After a moment he looked at Hunk, who frowned worriedly. Keith then shook his head, telling him everything he needed in that single movement.

“I’m going to go,” Keith said, getting up. “Thank you for breakfast, Hunk.”

“No problem, Keith.” Hunk smiled. “I’m just glad you ate what you could.”

Keith sucked in a deep breath then walked out of the room, unable to shake the feeling of Nyma’s eyes glued to him even as he left the room. He was going to have to keep a close eye on her, even if everybody kept their eyes on her… she was sneaky and determined.

 

Keith walked into Red’s hanger before walking over to her and touching her paw. He was often surprised just how much larger her paw was than his hand, but at the same time it made him smile. Something so large being so gentle and mothering… it was nice. Keith could only hope that he would be half the mother to his baby that she had been to him.

-What is wrong? Is that Nyma girl bothering you?- She asked.

“No, it’s not that… I just can’t shake a bad feeling.” Keith said with a soft sigh. “So I came to check on you, make sure that you’re alright.”

Red seemed to chuckle. -Of course I’m alright; I am not like Blue. I do not get captured that easily.-

Keith smiled softly with a chuckle. “Didn’t I save you the first time we met?”

Keith could only guess that Red would be blushing, if she was human. Instead, though, she just laughed nervously. -H-hey, listen; that was different. I had been asleep for 10,000 years; my joints were all rusty and I was slow. But now I’m fit again, so they don’t stand a chance.-

He nodded. “So long as you’re safe; the last thing I want is for you to be taken away. The universe needs you.”

Red laid down in front of him, putting her nose against him and looking down at him with big eyes. -The universe needs you as well, Keith. Without you, there is no Voltron.-

Keith shook his head. “You and I both know that’s not true. You let Lance drive you, and Blue lets Allura drive him. The universe doesn’t need me nearly as much as it needs you and Voltron… besides…” He sighed. “I might be out of it for a while after I have the baby… who knows how useless I’ll be after that.”

-Mothers do not take long to recover from childbirth. And I could easily make a seat for your child; they could come on missions with us. It will be a warrior baby from the moment it’s born; that would make me proud.- Red purred, her tail beginning to swish happily.

 

Lance looked down at Keith’s plate, then back at Nyma and Rolo. There was something wrong; he could feel it. He wanted nothing more than to run after Keith and make sure that nothing happened to him, but at the same time he knew that he needed to give Keith some time. It was hard on Keith to be constantly surrounded by people, just as it was hard for Lance to leave him by himself. Shiro trusted Keith to be able to handle himself, so Lance had to do the same thing for his boyfriend.

“So, Blue,” Nyma said, seeming to snap out of whatever daze she had fallen into a while back. “It’s been a while; I see that friend of yours has gone through quite the change.”

Lance wanted to yell at her, to tell her to stay away from Keith, but at the same time she hadn’t physically done anything wrong… except for stealing the Blue Lion, he had no real reason to be mad at her. He sucked in a breath. “Yeah, he’s been through a lot the past few months.” He said softly.

“I can tell; he looks completely different. Cuter than he was the last time we saw him; wouldn’t you agree, Rolo?”

Rolo shrugged slightly, looking at her almost warningly. “I think he was better off the other way, but I also think we should keep our mouths shut, Nyma. They have been kind enough to help us so far; we shouldn’t upset them by trying to pick a fight.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Nyma said, clearly faking her innocence.

The entire room was becoming more and more tense by the moment; the air was so thick it could be cut with a knife. But it was this tension that seemed to encourage the group to split Nyma up and take her as far from where Keith was. If she could still smell him, it could be bad.

“Lance, how about you and I take our guests up to the Bridge? At least until Hunk and Pidge finish their pod.” Shiro suggested.

“Sure; sounds like a plan to me.” Lance said, looking them over.

There was something about the way Rolo looked at Keith and the way that he looked at Lance that caused Lance to be on edge. It was as though Rolo was keeping a secret… a big secret. If it involved Keith, if Rolo was planning on hurting Keith, then he had to do whatever he could to protect the person he loved. Keith had been through too much; he wouldn’t let anything else hurt him.


	60. Authors Note: Been a While

Hey guys, I know it's been a long time since I've posted anything so I decided to give you guys a bit of an update on what's going on.

I'm still struggling with my depression and anxiety but I've been feeling better lately. Because of this I have once again started working on this story however now that I am writing I ran into my enemy: WRITERS BLOCK. Yeah. I'm stuck XD I'm trying to force myself through it but I can't promise that when this next chapter comes out it'll be any good. My Fiance/Editor is doing her best to help me but even she doesn't know where I should go from here so yeah, this next chapter will be... interesting XD

I am still working on it though and hopefully I'll be able to push past this block both in the writing sense and my health wise as well and post the next couple of chapters.


	61. Numb

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After forever here is another chapter!

Keith’s time alone didn’t last nearly as long as he had hoped it would. Luckily, when he finally left and went looking for people he found Lance by himself reading the Galra Pregnancy Book. He was scowling at the pages, suggesting that he either needed glasses or he was tired from staring at the pages. Whatever the case, the simple sight of Lance caused Keith’s heart to race and his cheeks to warm up.

He was beautiful. The dark flawless skin, his soft, dark brown hair, and those beautiful blue eyes. Just looking at him made Keith want to curl up on his lap and purr away.

Realizing that he hadn’t been seen yet, Keith smiled, ducking down slightly and walking around the edge of the couch, keeping his ears down as he wandered around slowly. He peeked over the edge, smiling slightly before he jumped onto the couch, pinning Lance down to the couch before he put his head on Lance’s chest with a loud purr.

“K-Keith, what are you doing?” Lance chuckled slightly, a blush on his face.

“You’re warm,” Keith said. “And beautiful.” His tail began to sway happily.

 

Lance blushed slightly darker as he looked down at Keith, giving him a smile. “Y-you’re silly.”

Keith closed his eyes, snuggling against his neck.

“Keith…” Lance put the book down, running his fingers through Keith’s raven hair. “... What happened between you and Rolo?”

Keith instantly felt sick to his stomach as he looked up at Lance, his eyes wide as his ears went down. “W-w-w-what do you mean?”

“You know what I mean.” Lance said, touching Keith’s face softly. “It’s obvious… the way you guys look at each other. It’s not love… it’s more like discomfort or fear, like you’re both keeping a big secret… and I can take a few guesses about what that secret is.”

Keith sighed, looking away. “I-it was when you ran off with Nyma.” He admitted quietly. “I was… jealous, I guess… I hated the fact that you were running off with somebody we didn’t know, but… the more I think about it the more I realize that it wasn’t just that. It was more that you were running off with somebody you just met rather than running off with me. I mean, back then I saw you as annoying and I didn’t understand why you were mean to me or why you yelled… and I didn’t understand why I got mad and yelled back. I guess… I was just confused; Rolo saw that and said all the right things. So I went off with him… we had sex… there was no feeling behind it… like a rush of heat and frustration. I… I’m sorry, Lance. I’m really, really sorry… p-please, don’t leave me…”

Lance looked confused as he took Keith’s face in his hands. “Keith, I could never leave you over something like that. We have both been with somebody else in the past; that doesn’t matter. What matters is that we have each other now. But… honestly, I’m glad that it was just that.”

Keith turned his head curiously. “Y-you are? Why?”

“Because, Keith, I thought he hurt you. I was about to kick his ass. If you had told me had laid a hand on you without your consent I was going to rip his head off and stick it up his ass… but if it was sex… consensual sex… I’m glad. I’m glad you’re okay.”

Keith blushed slightly, nuzzling against Lance’s hand. It was so nice to be cared about, and while he could only guess Lance would be the one getting his ass kicked in a fight against Rolo… it was still nice to know that he would still fight for him… for them. He was still struggling with the feeling of being cared about by another human being, and he still feared the worst every time he woke up in the morning… but slowly he found himself putting all of his trust into this relationship, into this man.

“I-I-I…” Keith stuttered slightly. “I love you… Lance.”

Lance smiled, hugging Keith tightly, running his fingers through Keith’s hair. “I love you too, Keith.”

“They’ll be gone tomorrow… we have nothing to worry about…” Keith said softly, closing his eyes.

 

When Keith woke back up he found that he was alone in the lounge on the couch, a blanket over his shoulders. It had to be early in the morning; probably around 6 in Earth time.   
That was about the time that Lance got up to do his skin care regimen. It was something that Keith didn’t really understand, but then again he knew he would never look as beautiful as Lance was… so Keith didn’t have to even try.

Keith sat up, rubbing his eyes as the baby kicked softly, trying to adjust into a more comfortable position in the tight area. He yawned, pushing the blanket off before standing up and taking a few sleepy steps towards the door. He didn’t understand the strange feeling he was having, but he felt that he needed to find Lance or Shiro. Something was off and   
he needed to make sure they were okay.

He didn’t end up making it to the door before he was suddenly grabbed from behind, a sweet-smelling rag covering his nose and mouth. Keith let out a surprised squeak, struggling against the long yellow arm wrapped around his chest. Keith kicked, feeling weak and dizzy as he was slowly pulled backwards. Nyma had him… it had to be Nyma; nobody else was this obnoxiously brightly-colored.

This was bad.

“I got him.” Nyma said as the door opened and Rolo walked in.

“I’m not sure about this, Nyma.” Rolo said as Nyma let Keith go, letting him fall to his side weakly. He was still awake, meaning whatever Nyma had exposed him to wasn’t chloroform; it was some kind of paralyzing liquid. He couldn’t move, couldn’t lift his head, and now even moving his hand was hard. “They’ve done a lot of stuff to help us.”  
“If you don’t want to help me, that’s fine. But we didn’t destroy that ship for nothing. Besides, I’m sure Prince Lotor would pay handsomely for a Half-Galran Omega.” Nyma smiled, rolling Keith onto his stomach as she cuffed his hands together before putting a gag over his mouth, keeping him from making the few sounds he could make.

Rolo sighed, crossing his arms. “Nyma, stop.” He said, grabbing her shoulder. “They got rid of Zarkon and are working to help people that are still under the remaining control of the Galra… we don’t have to be criminals anymore; we can help people that are going through the same things we did.”

Nyma was quiet for a very long time before she whipped around suddenly, punching Rolo and knocking him off of his feet. “You’ve gotten weak, Rolo. We are so much better than we were back then, and now with the money we’ll get for him on top of the money we got for all those other slaves we’ll never have to work again. If you want to stay here and ‘help’ them then good for you, but I will not let you ruin this for me.”

Keith frowned. This was good; they were fighting, which bought him time to get feelings back to his body and it also gave Lance time to come to his rescue. His rescue… god, he was starting to sound like a damsel in distress. He could defend himself… couldn’t he?

Rolo growled slightly, standing up and wiping bright green blood from his chin. “Nyma, stop this. You’re not thinking clearly. You and I both know that this is just the effect he is having on you. You know this is a bad idea. If you hurt him it could start a war with the Voltron Paladins, which is the last thing we want.”

Nyma clenched her fist, as though she was having a hard time coming up with an argument against him. “Rolo… shut up.” She growled, “and get out of my way.”

“I won’t.” Rolo said sternly. “I won’t let you throw your life away because of some primal base instincts. You’re my best friend, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.” He held his hand out to her. “Come on, let’s get out of here. You and me, we can leave this place and find Beemer. I’m sure we can find him… but we have to look together.”

Nyma was shaking slightly, but after a moment she reached for his hand and grabbed it. She looked at Keith, who scowled, but Rolo softly took her face in his free hand, turning his head to make her look at him.

“Ignore him; come on. Let’s go.” He lead her along, looking at Keith. “Sorry about this.” He said, then backed the rest of the way out of the room, leaving Keith furious and unable to move on the floor.

I'm going to kill them. Keith sighed, slowly trying to clench his fist but he could only feel his pinkie twitching. After whatever this is gets out of my system…

 

“What did they say exactly?” Shiro asked, looking at Keith, who was wearing a breathing mask to help force whatever drug was in his system out of it.

Keith looked at his hand, thankful that he could fully open and close it now. “They said that they were the ones who attacked the ship of Galran Omegas. But from what they made it sound like, Beemer left without them. I think maybe he might have been hacked or glitched or something… I’m not sure but they went looking for him.”

“And they just left you there?” Hunk asked. “That’s strange… why wouldn’t Rolo want to take you with them?”

“Because he didn’t want to start a war with us.” Keith said as Lance ran his fingers through Keith’s hair.

“Good. Because if they had tried to take you… I wouldn’t hold back.” He said, putting his head against the side of Keith’s. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help you, Keith…”

Keith smiled at him slightly. “Lance, it’s not your fault. I should have been paying more attention.”

“It’s no one’s fault.” Allura quickly said. “But we need to find those Omegas. If Beemer did have some type of malfunction, he could still have them. We could save them before they’re taken back to being a slave. Keith, are you able to fight?”

“No problem.” Keith said, pulling the mask off and slowly getting up. His legs were shaking slightly, but he could thankfully stand on his own two feet.

“Good. Coran, track the cruiser they took and follow them. Pidge and Hunk, see if you can find where Beemer ended up. When you find it, take the Lions out and go there.” Allura instructed.

“No problem.” Pidge smiled, walking over to one of the big computer screens with a smile as she began to type. “I’m going to need about 30 minutes, though.” She explained while Hunk walked over and began helping her with some numbers.


	62. The Omega Named Zayne

Keith had conflicting feelings about going after Rolo and Nyma. On one hand they would be able to save a lot of people just like him from becoming sex slaves for the Galra, but at the same time there was that lingering fear of becoming one himself. He knew his team would keep him safe and wouldn’t let something like that happen to him, but at the same time it was terrifying to think about. Not to mention there was the fear of something like this happening to his kid in the future. If it ended up with enough Galra DNA in its’ system, it could be in a lot of trouble and something like this could possibly happen in the future to him or her.

Perhaps that is why he decided to go with the team in the end, to make sure that other people… other Omegas, didn’t have to live his nightmare again and again. Even though he was scared, for himself and for his unborn child, he knew that more mothers and fathers could see their kids taken away if he didn’t help put a stop to it.

“Keith, are you alright?” Lance asked, putting his hand gently on Keith’s back as the red paladin stood almost frozen, staring at his reflection in the ship's window.

“Huh? Yeah, I’m fine.” Keith said, looking up at him with a slight blush and a smile. “Just thinking about some things… maybe a little harder than I should be.”

Lance wrapped his arms around Keith, hugging him from behind before resting his hand on Keith’s lower stomach. “About the baby?”

“Kinda… y-yeah. It just feels like since I’ve gotten pregnant I can help but panic over every little thing. I mean, my anxiety and depression was bad before, but now that I actually have a set reason to freak out I can’t think of anything else, and of course even if I had my medication with me here I can’t take it because I’m pregnant and that wasn’t exactly something I asked my doctor about before I left Earth.” Keith hadn’t even realized that he was shouting until Lance kissed his neck and caused the Galra to shiver and grimace at the wave of pleasure that washed through him.

Keith looked at Lance with a blush. “S-stop that.”

“Stop what?”

“My neck is sensitive!” He said, his ears going down while the tip of his tail puffed up. “Y-you know that!”

“Oh, I know, but I love the reaction you make. Besides, it gives you something else to worry about. Something that I can take care of for you.”

Keith blushed even darker. “L-Lance, I’m beginning to think that you’re the one in heat and not me.”

Lance smiled softly, kissing his cheek. “I’m always turned on when it comes to you.”

Keith puffed out his cheek in embarrassment before putting his head on Lance’s chest. “I’m scared, Lance.” He admitted softly. “I’m scared of seeing the other Omegas… seeing what they’ve been through… I-I mean, what if the same thing happens to me? What if the same thing happens to our child? I-if they’ve got enough Galra in them…”

“Breathe, Keith, Breathe. I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. Not to you; not to our kid.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.” Lance said, running his fingers through Keith’s hair.

“You’ll never leave us?”

“Never. You and I are a team, Keith. I won’t let you go solo on this… on any of this.”

Keith nodded hesitantly, looking over at the door when Pidge and Hunk jogged in.

“We found Rolo’s ship,” Pidge said. “Rolo and Nyma are going the wrong way so we have time to get to them. But we have a problem. We’re not the only ones who have locked onto their location; a Galra ship has locked onto them as well… we have to hurry.”

“Then let’s go.” Keith said with a soft scowl before clenching his fist. They needed to go as quickly as they could.

 

The ship had crash-landed in an asteroid field and was currently pinned against one of the larger rocks. It normally wouldn’t have been much of a problem, if it weren’t for just how packed the asteroids were.

“There’s no way we’ll be able to reach that in our Lions.” Hunk said with a soft sigh. “Especially not Coal and Yellow. If we bump into any of those rocks it could cause a huge domino effect and cause more harm than good.”

“Yeah, it would be a tight fit for Blue too…” Lance sighed. “But Red and Green should be able to make it with no problem.” He sounded less than thrilled; in fact, he sounded scared.

“The rest of us will stay here and protect you and the others as well. We won’t let the Galra ship get too close.” Shiro promised.

“Just be careful,” Lance said. “We don’t know what’s going on down there; it could be a trap for all we know.”

“We will.” Pidge promised as she drove her lion forward with Keith following closely, looking around for any signs of danger that could possibly hurt Pidge.

The wreck was bad but not nearly as bad as they expected it to be. The front part of the ship was crushed up like a soda can, but the back part of the ship was still in good shape. The side panels of the ship were open and there were a few aliens walking around the outside of the ship, as though trying to figure out how to fix it by themselves.

“So what’s the plan?” Pidge asked.

“See if anybody is hurt is the most important thing,” Keith said. “But I think we should mostly focus on getting everybody into the Lions so we can take them back to the Castle… They’ve been through a lot and I think a good meal and rest is what they deserve.” He tightened his grip on Red’s handles.

“Are you going to be okay?” Pidge asked, her voice softer. “You seem really… distracted today.”

“Yeah… I’ll be fine. I just… I don’t know what I’m feeling right now… I’m afraid to see the other Omegas… I guess that’s the best way that I can explain it… To see what most people like me go through. I got a lucky draw… but… I didn’t deserve it. I don’t deserve it.”

“Of course you do, Keith. You may not think so but the rest of us see just how hard you work, what you go through… Besides, we’re here now. We can help them and make sure they’re never hurt again.” Pidge smiled, the two angling themselves slightly as they landed on the ground, causing a worrying tremor to go through the asteroid. “That didn’t sound good.” She mumbled.

“No, it didn’t. We should get out of here as quickly as we can.” Keith said, getting out of his seat and making his way out of Red, heading towards the crashed ship.

“Hello.” Pidge said, waving to the frightened Galra.

Keith could tell by the scent in the air, the look in their eyes, and the shape some of them had that a handful of them were already pregnant, and one was holding a small bundle close to its’ chest as it shivered.

“My name is Pidge and this is Keith; we’re Paladins of Voltron. We’re here to take you home.”

Keith’s eyes landed on the Omega with the baby. It was clearly male like him but he was much younger than him; only about 14 going by his looks. He was shaking and looked exhausted. That wasn’t the only thing Keith noticed: the male’s leg was clearly broken by the ankle and was healing in a crooked state, he had a collar around his neck, and his eye was black.

This was one of the things Keith was afraid of seeing. The boy was so young, and so hurt… Keith could only hope this was his first kid but he had suspicions that wasn’t the case. Keith frowned, pulling his helmet off to show that he too was a Galra Omega, which helped most of them relax.

“How do we know that we can trust you?” The small male asked, holding the baby close as it began to cry. “The last people who said they would help us were attacked and we were taken again…”

Pidge looked at Keith, who walked over. “Because, us Omegas have to stick together… right?” He said, putting his hand on his stomach with a soft smile. “If we don’t watch over each other then who will?”

Most of them seemed to accept this, but the boy still looked hesitant. Keith smiled softly. “What’s your name?”

“Zayne.”

“Zayne, it’s nice to meet you. I promise, you’ll be safe… you and your child…”

Zayne clenched his teeth but nodded softly. “Fine.”

Zayne stood up, flinching as he put weight on his leg

“Do you want me to carry you?” Keith asked “You shouldn’t be walking on that.”

“I’m fine.” Zayne snapped, his ears down, but a stumble made him frown. “I can walk on my own… but it would be easier without him.” He held the small baby towards Keith, who tensed up. “Can you take him?”

“Um… s-sure.” Keith couldn’t remember the last time he had held a baby, so pulling the child awkwardly into his arms as he rocked it was a strange feeling. The baby whined and hiccuped, feeling around for Zayne. It was then that Keith realized that the infant was not only blind, but one of his ears had been crudely cut and burned. “What’s his name?”

“Kai.” Zayne said after a long moment, limping towards the Red Lion. “And before you ask, no; I didn’t do that to him.”

“What happened?” Keith looked back as the rest of the Galra Omegas followed him and Pidge, seeming to naturally split into two groups, though more seemed to try and follow Keith.

Zayne looked at his feet. “His...father.” He hissed. “The man who broke my leg and put this damn thing on me.” He gestured to the collar. “He wanted another Omega… Kai there is an Alpha.”

Keith tilted his head. “How can you tell?”

Zayne smirked. “What, are you serious? Are you stupid? Look at him.”

Keith did as he was told, tilting his head. “He looks like a fluffy Galra baby…”

“God, you’re actually stupid.” Zayne laughed. “Look at him again, then look at me.”

Keith once again did as he was told, and finally noticed what Zayne was talking about. Zayne, as well as all the other Omegas, had a slight glow around them and had a ‘soft’ look about them, while the baby didn’t have the glow and Keith was actually a little intimidated by him. “Oh… I think I get it now.” Keith blushed, his ears down.

Zayne walked into Red, whimpering softly.

-BABY! BABY BABY BABY! OHHHH MY GODDDD- Red said, nearly deafening Keith as he flinched. He was thankful only he could hear Red, otherwise the others could have easily been frightened by the noise. -IT’S SO CUTE! KKKKKEEEEEIIIITHHHH-

Keith shook his head, helping, Zayne sit down in the hall of Red before handing Kai back to Zayne. “Here.”

Zayne nodded softly. “Thank you… Keith, right?”

“Yep.”

“Even your name is stupid.” Zayne said, making Keith scowl before smiling.

“At least I don’t look stupid.”

“Ouch.” Zayne said sarcastically.

Keith walked out of Red, helping a few more Omegas onto the two lions.

Keith climbed into his chair after everybody was safely in the Lions and glanced towards Pidge as she took off into the air. After Pidge was a safe distance away Red took off, following them.

They didn’t get very high off of the asteroid before the flashing lights of battle caught their attention. Hunk, Lance, and Shiro were doing their best to distract the ship, long enough for Red and Green to hopefully get to a safe distance. It was hard on Keith, knowing that he couldn’t join in the fight and help the people he cared about. If they formed Voltron they would be able to take care of the ship, but if Red or Green were hit with enough force it could hurt if not kill some of the passengers on their lions.

“Get out of here; we’ll catch up after we disable their cannon.” Shiro promised over the coms, as though he was aware of the stress Keith was feeling.

“Call us if you need us, though.” Pidge said quickly.

“We will.” Lance promised.

Keith glanced at the Blue Lion, wishing he could see Lance behind the Lion’s eyes. After a moment he looked away, flying in the direction they had come from with Pidge close behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, I know it's been a while since my last chapter and I'm sorry about that, the five year anniversary of my brothers death just passed so I've been dealing with the extra depression surrounding that. Anyways, Zayne is an OC of mine who isn't really a main character but he will be in the next 2-3 chapters. He's mostly here to help Keith figure out some more things about the pregnancy and what not. So if you like him lemme know, if not well too bad he's here XD  
> I'm thinking about posing my first youtube video, it'll probably be a vlog until I get the equipment to do Video Game things, which will be fun. If you guys want to watch that lemme know and I'll post a link on the chapter following me posting it.


	63. The King and His Omega

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Two chapters in a row, what are chances of that happening XD Anyways, I didn't get a video posted today because it's Saturday and everybody was home, so the last thing I wanted to do was to walk around with a camera talking to myself with my family around me being all judgie Jason on me. Plus I'm kinda fat so I want to get a little bit of exercising before I start something like that. So yeah XD

Keith sat in the Red Lion, while Red and Green floated side by side in the void of space. Pidge was doing her best to map out the locations that her passengers lived so they would be able to take them all home, and while Keith knew he should be doing the same thing he was struggling with it. It had been over an hour since they had seen the others and while they hadn’t heard any signs that they were in trouble Keith was still beginning to panic, worried that somebody would get hurt and that he wouldn’t be there to protect them.

The sound of Kai crying caused Keith to jump, his heart racing as he looked over his shoulder at Zayne, who began shushing the baby from his seat.

“I-is he okay?” Keith asked, unsure.

“Yeah, just hungry.” Zayne sighed. “Typical baby stuff.” He laughed, putting the baby on his knees as he pulled off his shirt and pulled the infant to his chest, causing Keith to not only stare but blush as well.

“W-wait, what… you can… what?!”

Zayne blinked, tilting his head. “How else do you expect me to feed him?”

Keith’s thoughts began to race. Wait. Wait. So he was supposed to be able to breastfeed the baby when it was time? Could he even do that?! What if he couldn’t? Would the baby starve?! After a moment he forced himself to look away. “Does it… hurt?”

“Hurt? Hm… I guess it did the first time, and it’ll start to hurt again when he gets teeth but at the moment, no.”

Keith’s heart was pounding at the thought, his stomach twisting into knots.

“Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah, just… not sure how to feel.” Keith chuckled, touching his stomach. “I was just adjusting to the thought that I was having a kid… or at least I thought I was. But every time I learn something new I start to freak out all over again.”

Zayne smiled. “You’ll get used to it,” He said. “I know I was scared the first time… but when I held my baby in my arms for the first time all the fear, the panic, and the pain I had felt was gone… Though, the first time I had my husband with me… this time around I didn’t. But I know he will accept Kai, and will show him how to be an Alpha.”

“So… how many kids do you have?”

“Just two. Kai and a little girl; she’s almost a year now.”

“R-really? How old were you when you got married?”

“Well… that’s a bit of a long story.” Zayne leaned back. “I can tell just by looking at you that you’re not used to the Galra ways, so I’ll explain it to you. Poor Galran families or families that served close to Zarkon or a general of his were often chosen to be used as a tool of democracy between the Galra and whatever planet they were on that they weren’t conquering. In my case I was 12 when was forced to marry the Prince of a planet… at first we hated each other. Neither of us wanted to get married, let alone be in the same room for more than ten minutes… but after a while we not only realized that we had things in common but we became friends. He taught me how to fight, how to defend myself, and that the rich and powerful weren’t always cruel and evil… and I taught him how to be kinder, how to connect with his people, and even how to cook.” A look in Zayne’s eyes made Keith smile slightly. He was so in love, and while Keith had never met the man Keith could tell just by the description and the look on his face that he was one of a kind. “Then, when our daughter was born, it brought out an entirely new side of him. Suddenly he not only had his Omega, me, the person he would spend his life with, but now he had a little child to protect and raise. To set an example for, so that she knew what kind of Alpha she should look for in the future…”

“He sounds… really nice.” Keith smiled.

“He is… what about your Alpha; what is he like?”

Keith blushed. “Well… his name is Lance. He actually drives the Blue Lion. We went to school together for a few years before I was kicked out.”

“School?”

“Yeah, it’s a place all the younger generation of the Human race have to go to in order to learn things. Anyways, we went to school together and honestly he didn’t like me much either in the beginning. I remember him from school, how he was loud and annoying, and overly dramatic… but after I was kicked out and we reconnected I realized that those quirks of his were actually things that were endearing to me. Of course, I didn’t know how to react to my emotions and panicked to a point where I became angry and aggressive and… I was really mean to him. He didn’t deserve half the things I’ve put him through so far… and now he’s going to be a father… I want to ask him to stand by my side for the rest of our lives but… I don’t want to scare him off.”

Zayne laughed. “You’re in love, stupid. That’s how it feels. It starts with tightness in your chest, your head spins, your stomach curls into knots, and your blood heats up just by looking at their face. You lust after them, not just in the sexual way, but in the way that you want nothing but for them to be happy even if it means you’re sad. It’s an emotion that you hate but can’t live without… because for your entire life you were taught to look after yourself, and to do whatever it takes to keep yourself alive, but when you fall in love it doesn’t matter if you live, as long as they do.”

Keith looked down at his hands slowly. Zayne had described exactly how he was feeling. Hell, half of the time he couldn’t even make sense of he was feeling, yet this kid so many years younger than him had not only made sense of it but had put it into words.

Keith looked back out the window, a smile forming when he saw three familiar Lions coming into view.

“You’re in looove.” Zayne chuckled softly.

“Y-yeah… I guess I am.” Keith softly blushed, rubbing his arms as his eyes locked on the Blue Lion. He then turned on his communicator so the others could once again hear him as he spoke up. “Took you guys long enough. I was beginning to think we’d have to go save you.”

“Save us? Come on, Keith, it’s us. Your sharpshooter wouldn’t let anything happen to anybody.” Lance laughed.

“W-whatever; come on. We should get these guys to the Castle while we’re still in the clear.” Keith rubbed his arm nervously.

“Sounds good to me,” Zayne said. “I’m starving. Plus I kinda want to meet this Alpha that’s got your head spinning.” He snorted, and Keith blushed when Lance laughed.

“What was that? Somebody wants to meet the best and most incredible ‘Alpha’ in all of the Galaxies?” Chuckled Lance.

“Nope, you didn’t hear that. Bye, Lance!” Keith said loudly, turning off the communicator before looking back towards Zayne with a scowl. “Listen, you!”

Zayne began to laugh loudly, rubbing Kai’s back before lifting him up and patting the baby’s back, doing his best to make the baby burp.

Keith sunk down in his chair, hiding his face with a soft grunt.

-I like him :3- Chuckled Red, making Keith covering his ears with a whine.

“You guys are all ridiculous…” Keith sighed.

 

“We lost them… how did we lose them?” Allura sighed, hanging her head softly. They had been chasing after Rolo and Nyma for what felt like ages, and now that they had word that the rescue had been successful, turning around and meeting the Lions was their best bet.

“We’ll find them, Princess.” Coran promised. “Maybe not today, but someday.”

“Indeed… Keep the scans open; if we come within range of the ship again I want to know about it. Understood?”

“Yes, Princess.”

“Good. Now let’s go back and meet the Paladins.”

 

Keith hadn't even realized how exhausted he was until they landed safely back in the Castle, which is when it occurred to him that Red had done most of the driving home and that he had been half-asleep.

Keith blinked slightly before looking around. Zayne had fallen asleep with Kai on his chest, leaning against a nearby wall while most of the other passengers had fallen asleep sprawled out on the floor with only one or two still holding onto consciousness. It wasn’t until Keith stood up and rubbed his eyes that the others began to stir, as though afraid of being left behind or wounded in their sleep.

“We’re here, you guys. Come on.” Keith helped wake up the few who were still groggy before helping them out of the Red Lion.

It didn’t take long before all the Omegas were gathered at the feet of the Lions with Shiro, Allura, Lance, Coran, and Hunk standing in front of them. Coran counted them and frowned.

“Alright; well, we only have 8 healing pods and there are 14 of you.” Coran crossed his arms. “We’re going to have to put you guys into two groups. The most wounded will go first while the others get something to eat and get any emergency care they may need. Then, when the first group is done the others will go in and the first will get some food.”

“Zayne, I think you should go with the first group.” Keith said, looking at the trembling man who was clearly feeling a lot of pain from his foot.

“What about Kai? No. I can’t leave him. I won’t leave him alone.” Zayne looked down at his son, who hiccuped slightly before sticking his fist back into his mouth and falling asleep again.

Before Keith even realized what he was about to say it came out. “I can watch him.”

Zayne examined Keith, then let out a snort. “Um… no, thank you. You don’t even sound sure of it yourself, not to mention… you have enough to worry about. He’s my son, my problem… You shouldn’t burden yourself with him.”

“He’s not a burden,” Keith said. “Besides, if you don’t help yourself you’ll just get worse and then you won’t be able to help him. Okay? Besides… I… wouldn’t mind the practice… holding a baby.”

Zayne sighed. “Fine… but I swear if anything happens to him-”

“Nothing will happen to him; we’ll all help keep an eye on him.” Lance said, walking over and putting his hand on Keith’s shoulder, making him blush.

“Ah, you must be the Alpha…” He examined Lance and snorted. “God, you’re ugly. But I can tell you’ve got a good heart, at least.” Zayne gave Kai a soft kiss on his head before handing him to Keith, who adjusted awkwardly to once again hold the small bundle.

“Alright; you eight come with me.” Coran said, pointing to Zayne and a group of other wounded in the group.

“And the rest of you follow me,” Hunk said. “We’ll get you all some food, no problem.”

Zayne gave Keith and his son a final glance before following Coran, limping painfully as he did so. He was clearly weak and exhausted but still he continued to worry more about his son than himself. It was something that Keith not only understood… but would probably do himself if the situation were switched.

“He’s so cute.” Lance said, looking over Keith’s shoulder at the baby before he frowned. “What happened to his ear?”

“His dad, apparently.” Keith said, trying not to growl at the thought of somebody hurting such a small child. “He blinded him too. What kind of monster does that to a baby?”

“I don’t know… but we should take him to our room, get him a change of clothes… if, of course, you don’t mind him having a set of our baby’s clothes?”

“Well… we can always get more, I guess; he needs them right now.”

“Yeah.” Lance smiled softly, leading Keith towards their room as Keith frowned.

Kai was tiny; how could anybody… anything hurt something so small and innocent? Kai had never done anything wrong; he was too little to understand anything that was going around him, let alone do something to make somebody hurt him in such a way.

If Keith ever met the bastard who hurt this baby, he would make them pay. That was for damn sure.


	64. Happy New Years (Authors Note)

Hey guys, it's me again.

I'm sorry that this next chapter is taking so long to come out. It's hard to think of what to write and the fact that I want it to be perfect for all of you just makes it even harder, I am still working on it though.I'ts been quite the pain to get this chapter out so instead of freaking myself out about this next chapter I'm going to let you guys know more about Zayne as kind of a New Years thing because he will only be in two more chapters and we'll never see him again XD. I'm sorry if you guys really like him, he's not a necessary part of the story and is only here to show Keith some more things about being a Galra parent.

Now, Originally Zayne wasn't going to be in this story at all, I had made an entirely different character to fill this part but after playing out the scenes more I realized that one of my previous oc's from a different story entirely would fill this party better. So I brought in Zayne who is from an original group of characters I use for DnD like stories with Magic and what not XD Zayne has always been the "mom" out of my boys so I figured he was perfect for the part. Now, bringing in a developed character of mine into a fan-fiction actually took a lot of bravery because I was afraid of the kind of ridicule he would fall under.

Normally in my stories Zayne is there to knock some sense into the team, to help push them to their goals but in this case he was used to show Keith the pain that other Galra parents were going through and how lucky Keith was to have friends around him to protect him from people who would try to hurt him or his unborn child. Zayne is also around to show Keith how to care for a baby Galra; like breast feeding them when it comes time for it and brings up questions to Keith on how he's going to handle doing that in the future.

With Zayne's past in this story it's rough. He was forced to marry a man he had never met before and while he hated it at first he ended up falling in love with the man, and ended up having a child with him before he was stolen away from his home by a man we'll call "Jason" because I'm shit when it comes to names. Well "Jason" is Kai's father, and also the man who blinded the baby after discovering that Kai was also an Alpha. "Jason" abused Kai and Zayne, forcing Zayne into a relationship in order to protect the baby from more harm. He was there for quite a while before being rescued by the "vampires".

Of course "Jason" isn't just going to give up on Zayne that easily but Zayne's husband-the man he loves will protect him now, and will raise Kai to become a brave and powerful Alpha. Kai will be blind the rest of his life but is going to be one of the most powerful warriors on the planet with his siblings and his adopted father. He'll know what "Jason" did to him and will never forgive him, and uses his hatred to defend others from potential harm. But that's not a really big part of Heat of Our Love and won't be mentioned in future chapters. Possibly in book 2 they'll be mentioned (if there's a book 2, don't hold me on that), but for now we're pretty much done with Zayne and Kai because they pretty much live a happy ending!

 

Anyways, I hope this makes up for not having any chapters out, though probably not. Happy new years to everybody and may 2018 be better than this year!


	65. Sight and Sounds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long you guys, things have been crazy and before I knew it almost two months passed XD I guess that's what happens when you spend too much time playing Video Games, playing with cats, and watching more youtube than ever thought possible. Anyways, here is this chapter, I'm sorry it's short and hopefully the next one will be sooner than this one was XD
> 
> In other words I tried to put what I felt like into Lance during this Chapter. It didn't express it much though. I lost my brother suddenly while in this chapter Lance clearly had some time to deal with what was happening. So yeah... there's that. Though I did sob like a baby while writing this.

Four hours later things had settled down, and while Zayne was expected to be in the pod for another six vargas or more, the rest of the ship had calmed down. The ones who hadn’t been able to get into the pods through the first round had eaten as much as they could without getting sick before being temporarily bandaged. Now most of them had fallen asleep in a pile of blankets in the main resting room, something that reminded Lance a lot of Keith.

Despite not knowing exactly what Keith was going through he had been doing as much research on the subject as he could. This just proved that most of the Omegan Galra were going through their mating season at the same time, resulting in blanket nests and extreme cuddles with each other. It was strangely cute, like a litter of puppies or kittens piling on top of one another for warmth and protection.

Speaking of Keith… where had he gone? He had been spending time with the baby named Kai and they had just vanished together about half an hour ago.

Frowning slightly, Lance walked out of the main room before making his way down the hallway in the direction of his room. He listened for any sound of Keith in case he was in a different room than what he was expecting, but he wasn’t surprised to open the door to Keith’s bedroom to see him sprawled out on the bed with Kai laying across his chest, his ears slightly twitching. Kai’s eyes were closed and he didn’t look in his direction when Lance walked in, but in all honesty Lance couldn’t tell if that was because he was asleep or blind.

Keith, however, was clearly asleep. His head had fallen slightly to the side, breathing softly with his mouth open ever so slightly. His ears were down, his lion-like tail hanging off the edge of the bed and touching the floor, and his hand across Kai’s back protectively while the other one was under his head.

A tender smile formed on his face as Lance walked across the room and planted a kiss on Keith’s forehead, causing him to to whine slightly and turning his head to the other direction. Lance ran his fingers through Keith’s hair, sitting on the edge of the bed near Keith’s head. Even asleep, Keith looked exhausted. Lance could only guess that it was because he was pregnant, but in all honesty he wasn’t sure if that was the only reason or not.

Kai let out a soft whine, lifting his head up and putting it back down, blinking as he looked around helplessly. He was awake now, and the way he was moving around he was going to wake up Keith. Lance gently reached over, picking up Kai and holding him against his chest as he rocked him. Kai whined again, feeling around for a moment, and the second that his hand touched the skin on Lance’s neck he began to panic and cry.

It took Lance only a few seconds to realize the reason for Kai’s fear. He wasn’t Galra. He didn’t smell like one and he definitely wasn’t furry like Zayne or Keith, so to suddenly be held by somebody new was scary for the small infant. Lance got to his feet as he rocked Kai, doing his best to keep the crying infant from waking up Keith. After a few moment he decided to start humming before singing softly.

“Somewhere… over the rainbow, way up high. There’s a land that I heard of once in a lullabye.” Lance sang, making Kai slowly begin to calm down. “Somewhere, over the rainbow, skies are blue, and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true.”

Keith chuckled from behind Lance, causing him to jump slightly. “You’re really good at that… taking care of kids, I mean.” His eyes were slightly closed from exhaustion as he sat up, the blanket falling around his hips.

“Not good enough, apparently. I was trying to keep him from waking you up.” He said with a soft pout.

“I’m a light sleeper. Besides, I woke up the second you took Kai away. I thought he fell off; I was worried.” Keith yawned softly. “Thank you for trying to take care of me though. I really appreciate the help.”

“Anytime, Keith. I love you; you know that.”

“I-I love you too, Lance.” Keith blushed slightly, holding out his arms as Lance handed him the baby who instantly began to relax, letting out a gentle whine. “Do you think he’s fully blind? I-I mean… if there’s a chance that he could still have some of his vision?”

Lance frowned. “Right… you’re right. We should take him to Coran and have a look at him and make sure that if he does have some vision left, if we can save it.”

Keith climbed out of bed, putting Kai against his chest and holding him gently, letting a purr rumble through his chest. A blush formed on his face as he and Lance walked along. He hated purring around Lance, mostly because of how embarrassed it made him, but it seemed to soothe Kai and make Lance smile like a fool.

“You’re really cute, Keith.”

“If you know what’s good for you, I suggest you shut the hell up.” Keith mumbled with a deep blush.

Lance’s frown twisted into a smile as he rubbed Keith’s back. “Anything you say, Samurai.”

 

“Well, despite having 97.6 percent of his vision missing, the little tyke actually has some vision in his right eye.” Coran looked at Kai, who squirmed against Keith. “It’s not a lot, but he can see shadows and a few colors. I’m surprised he can see that much; the scarring is really bad.”

“Is there anything way his vision can get better?” Lance wondered with a soft frown.

“Well, as you both know, the pods don’t heal scar tissue, but if he did go in the pod, it might help. But I highly doubt the pods can do anything.” Coran frowned softly.

“I see…” Keith frowned, running his fingers over Kai’s head gently. “So he’ll always be this blind.”

“Yes, he will, and if his vision does get better it’ll be a miracle.” Coran said. “Don’t worry too much, though; he isn’t feeling any pain from his blindness, not to mention he’s young enough he won’t remember a time where he wasn’t blind, so he won’t miss seeing too much.”

“That… doesn’t make me feel any better.” Lance admitted sadly. “There’s so much for him to see and he won’t get to enjoy it because his father is a dick.”

“I’m sorry, but there’s nothing we can do in order to help him at this point. Perhaps if we had found him a few weeks ago when this had first happened we would have been able to save more of his vision, but we’re simply too late to help him now.”

“Damn it…” Keith growled, holding Kai close as he walked away. Lance could almost swear that there were tears in his boyfriend's eyes.

“Thank you for the help, Coran.”

“No problem. We’ll lay him down in one of the healing chambers when the time comes.” Coran promised. “That way he can get the healing he needs.”

Lance nodded slightly before following after Keith, hoping that the Galra man wasn’t too upset about the news. It was upsetting to him; he could only imagine how hard it was for Keith, who seemed to be taking the boy’s situation personally. He ended up finding Keith in the main sitting room, sitting on the couch with Kai resting on his thighs while he gently rubbed the infant’s stomach as Kai cried.

It was a strange sight to see Keith so emotional. Granted he had gotten used to it since Keith discovered that he was pregnant, but it was still hard seeing him so… broken over something like this. Lance could only guess that Keith was thinking about their unborn child and what they would do if they discovered something like this had happened to their son or daughter. Lance knew that he himself would have a hard time with it, but he also knew that Keith would likely take it a lot harder. He would blame himself for every little thing that happened to their child before or after they were born. A skinned knee would be a big deal to the black-haired man; it was just who he was. He cared, sometimes a little too much.

“Keith, are you alright?” Lance asked, walking over and sitting next to him, putting his arm around Keith’s shoulders.

“Y-yeah.” Keith said, his voice cracking slightly as he held back the tears. “I just hate that there’s nothing we can do.”

“I get it.” Lance said, rubbing Keith’s back gently. “When I was younger one of my brothers was diagnosed with cancer.” He kept his voice low and soft and avoided looking at Keith for a little while. “We were all there for him, but it was hard to see, y’know? Before the diagnosis he was sick a lot, but after we knew what it was he just began to go downhill fast. He got sicker and sicker and all the ‘treatments’ just… they hurt him so bad. Of course there was nothing we could do to help him except for being there but it was hard. Watching as the chemo took away his hair, the constant vomiting and laying in bed… then by the time the chemo effects would start to wear off and he was able to move around again it was time for another dosage… He died at 16… I was 14. All he ever wanted to do was see space, and well-” Lance let out a soft chuckle. “I kind of hoped that joining the Garrison would help a part of him fulfill that.”

Keith looked at him, slightly dumbfounded. Keith rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. “I didn’t know that. I’m sorry, Lance.”

“It’s okay. It’s not something I talk about a lot. Hell, the only other person who knows is Hunk because I got drunk one day and spilled my guts to him. Don’t ask how I got the alcohol.”

Keith let out a slight chuckle. “Well… I’m glad you told me.”

“You know what… me too.”


	66. Pidge's Question and Allura's Gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow two chapters so soon? I guess this means I finally got some inspiration back. I found that I was struggling with some of the idea's I had but decided to just cut those idea's out and now here we are. So I'm going to write as much as I can while this all sticks with me so you could get a bunch of chapters or just one more, we'll have to see. Let's hope for the greater though :D

A few hours later Zayne and Kai were reunited once again. The young father looked much better after a trip in the pods, having a bit of color brought back to his face. He was able to walk around without any problems and he had a bit of a smile on his face as he held his son, rocking him. Despite the bad news he seemed happy.

“So he can still see?”

“Yes, he can see a few shapes and colors in his right eye but that’s just about it. Coran said it’ll probably never get better.” Keith said, “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be… this is good news… I thought he would be blind forever, that he would get to see my husband’s face and the last thing he saw was the face of the monster that did this to him. But… he can still see me, he will be able to see my husband… thank you, Keith. I guess you’re not as useless as you look.”

Keith scowled. “You’re a real dick.”

Zayne laughed, “I don’t know what that means, so I’ll take that as a compliment.” He smiled and Keith let out a chuckle.

“We should lay him in one of the pods; you can sit outside of it the entire time. If there is the slightest chance that he can have more vision you should take it.”

Zayne nodded, “You’re right… but I need to feed him first. He’s probably starving by now.”

Keith blushed. The idea of seeing Zayne breastfeed again made him uncomfortable, simply because it reminded him that he would have to do that soon. “Y-yeah, you do that. Then come get somebody when you’re ready.”

“I will… thank you again, Keith.”

Keith got to his feet and nodded slightly before he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

“A little freaked about breastfeeding?” Pidge asked, causing Keith to let out a strangely girly scream, his fur standing on end.

“Pidge! What the- how long have you been here?!”

“Long enough.” She smiled, “So, are you?”

Keith sighed, “Yeah… a little. I mean, being pregnant is hard enough; the idea that I’ll have to…” He softly touched his chest. “I mean… it feels wrong… almost scary. But what other options do I have? It’s not like they provide half-breed milk anywhere, and if they do then I need to know, like now.”

Pidge smiled, “Well, we have Kaltenecker.” She pointed out, making Keith’s eyes widen.

“Pidge, you’re a genius!” He said, grabbing her shoulders.

“I know.” She beamed. “Oh, that reminds me; Allura told me to come find you. She wants you to grab Lance and then head to her room. She has something for you guys.”

Keith tilted his head slightly. He remembered that Allura had mentioned some kind of ‘gift’ before, but in all the madness he had forgotten all about it. Is that what this could have been about? Some kind of gift? If that was the case, what could it possibly be? “Alright, then I better get going. I think Lance went to help Hunk with dinner.”

Pidge waved, watching as Keith ran off before she turned her attention to Zayne. She had her own questions for the young man.

 

Pidge walked over to Zayne, who looked up at her with a surprised look but he didn’t seem hostile in any way towards her. He looked her over cautiously before turning his attention back to his nursing infant. Pidge watched him for a second before she smiled.

“He’s a cutie.” Pidge sat next to Zayne, careful not to get to close to him in case he lashed out or felt cornered in any way.

“T-thank you.” Zayne said, “Pidge, right? You helped us get off that rock?”

“Yeah!” Pidge was glad that Zayne remembered her; hopefully that would help ease the little bit of tension between the two of them. “Listen, I was wondering if I could ask you some questions? If you’re comfortable, I mean.”

“What kind of questions?”

“How do you give birth?” She asked and Zayne blushed.

“Okay, wow, bold and right out there… well, how can I explain this…?” He looked around for a moment before grabbing a tablet off the table and activating it before turning it to a program much like “Paint” that they had on Earth. Zayne then drew a line on it, then a smaller line off of it. “See, this smaller tube leads to a little ‘nest’.” He explained, “This is where the baby is formed and normally the only way for the baby to get there is through the tube, which is how the baby gets out. It travels through the small tube, into the big tube, and out. But from how Keith said it… he doesn’t have the smaller tube.”

Pidge frowned. “Then how did he get pregnant?” She asked.

“Well, he transformed, right? He’s never looked like this before now?”

Pidge nodded.

“Well then- I’m just guessing here- but maybe the nest formed first, at the beginning of his heat, then when he mated the first time the transformation allowed the semen to leak into the nest. Who knows, it’s possible that if he had waited to mate he might have never gotten pregnant.”

 

“I’m kind of excited to find out what this present is.” Lance admitted with a laugh as he and Keith walked down the hall, holding hands. “Any guesses?”

Keith shook his head. “No. Honestly, I completely forgot that they were making something until now. With everything going on it completely slipped my mind.” Keith put his hand on his stomach as the baby kicked, clearly trying to make more room for itself. The baby was probably getting snug in there now. He was almost eight weeks along now and the baby was probably the size of an apple, and without much room to move it would be hard. Still though, the baby had to wait for a little while longer until his stomach began to expand more, so for now Keith’s bladder and other organs would just have to get out of the way.

“Are they kicking?” Lance guessed and Keith nodded.

“Yeah. Knowing my luck the baby is claustrophobic like I am.” Keith said with a fake laugh.

“You’re claustrophobic?” Lance tilted his head. “Why didn’t I know that about you?”

“Well… I don’t like admitting I’m afraid of things.” Keith shrugged, “I guess I’m just worried what you would think of me if you found out about half the things I'm afraid of or the things that are wrong with me.”

Lance frowned as he stopped walking. “Keith, it’s not bad to be afraid of things. I’m scared of a lot of things too but I know that as long as you’re by my side I don’t have anything to worry about. I just hope that someday you’ll feel safe enough with me that you’ll be able to face your fears too.”

Keith blushed, feeling even the tips of his ears warming up. He quickly looked away, “Y-y-yeah. Me too.”

Lance placed a gentle kiss on Keith’s forehead before he and Keith made their way to Allura’s door, gently knocking on it. 

After a few seconds of quiet Allura opened the door and smiled brightly.

“Come in, come in.” She smiled, quickly pulling them in before closing the door behind the two of them.

Allura’s room was clean like normal; even the bed was neatly put together without even a single wrinkle, as though she had purposely made it as neat as possible before they came in. Everything seemed in place except for a thing which was in the center of the room covered in a white sheet. It looked like a familiar shape but Keith struggled to figure out what it actually was with it covered up like that.

“What’s that?” Lance asked, making Allura chuckle.

“It’s your present, silly. Please, go ahead.” She gestured in the direction of the sheet and watched as the two boys made their way towards the sheet and after a moment of hesitation Keith looked towards Lance.

“I got to open the mobile.” He said, “You should get to open this one.”

“Are you sure?” Lance asked and Keith nodded. “Oh, thanks, babe.” He smiled, grabbing the sheet and slowly pulling it off.

Under the sheet was a crib, but not like the wooden one Keith had seen at the Space Mall. This one looked almost like an escape pod; it was completely rounded and made with shiny white metal that had been rounded out for an opening. The inside of the crib was padded a light purple in a high circle along the inside. 

It had legs, however the legs were folded up, showing that the crib was completely capable of floating thanks to a device that was stuck to the bottom of it.

Lance circled it in awe while Keith walked over and gently touched the fabric on the inside. It was incredibly soft to the touch and almost instantly caused Keith’s lip to tremble.

“Thank you, Allura.” Keith said, “It’s amazing… thank you so much.”

Allura smiled, putting her hands gently behind her back. “It was fun. It took Coran and I a while to put it together but I’m thankful that it’s finally done and that we are able to give it to you. We made it able to float like this so if you needed to you could easily pull it around, also if the castle gets knocked around by battle it will immediately adjust itself to protect the infant inside.” She explained, walking over. “We tested every possible outcome, even in the case of a power outage it has it’s own crystal, but if you ever feel unsafe you can put the legs own. It will still adjust itself. In the case of a fire or other emergency it’ll put a shield around it and has its own life support system.” The more she explained the harder it became for Keith not to cry, though Lance was sobbing. “We figured the last thing you two needed to worry about was the crib, plus I can hope that this will lessen the worry you guys have for your child during the nights.”

“This is amazing!” Lance hugged Allura tight. “You’re the best, Allura!”

Allura chuckled, “Anything for you guys; you are my family. Anything you need, just let us know and we will help you get it.”

Keith rubbed the tears out of his eyes. He had managed to hold most of them down, though it had been very difficult. He looked back down at the crib and smiled; this was beginning to feel more and more real to him. He didn’t know how he would feel tomorrow, but right now he felt excited to have this child. He couldn’t wait to hold them in his arms.


	67. Coming Home

Two days later, they were dropping Zayne off at his home planet. He was the last one of the Omega’s to be dropped off and it wasn’t a moment too soon. Keith had gotten attached to Zayne and Kai, and he knew the longer they put it off the harder he knew it would be to say goodbye. Now that the moment was here, though, Keith found it hard to let them go.

The planet was beautiful, with colors opposite of the ones on Earth. The sky was a forest green, the ocean a soft gold, the sand a dark blue like the ocean, and the forest was a sky blue. It was stunning to see, but what was even more stunning was the medieval-like castle that rested in the center of the forest. It was massive, as was the village that surrounded it, so of course when a large castle landed outside the forest everybody came to see what the commotion was about.

“I-I don’t know if I can do this…” Zayne said, his voice shaking. His normally confident and brave demeanor had been replaced by fear and tears.

“What?” Keith looked at him. “You’re finally home; don’t you want to see your husband?”

“Of course I do.” Zayne said, holding Kai close as the baby began to cry. “I can’t wait to see him but… w-what if he hates Kai? I mean, I-I can’t give him away. Not now; I love him too much. But if my husband hates him, if my daughter hates him…” Zayne was shaking, his breathing picking up. Keith knew that if he didn’t step in then a panic attack would soon follow.

Keith walked over, putting his hands on Zayne’s shoulders. “Zayne, breathe. If your husband loves you nearly as much as you love him then he will accept him without a second of hesitation. Do you understand me? It’s alright, but you have to breathe.”

“R-right… you’re right.” Zayne sucked in a breath, beginning to calm himself before he let out a slight chuckle. “Who knew you would actually be useful when it came to stuff like this?” He ignored the expression Keith gave him before he looked him in the eye. “Will you come with me, Keith? Walk me out of the ship? I don’t know if I can handle all the questions.”

“Of course I’ll come with you.” Keith said, “We all will and we’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

When they all walked out of the ship it felt as though they had walked back into time, and while it was clear the villagers had seen ships before it was also clear that they hadn’t seen one as big as the Castle of Lions. Many of the villagers were wearing clothing he had only ever seen during “Ren Faire” or other medieval events that happened or were talked about. So in the sea of old-fashioned clothing it wasn’t hard to find Zayne’s husband and his young daughter.

The daughter looked a lot like Zayne, just as Kai did, however the daughter also had curly blonde hair going down her back and she was wearing a light pink dress. The King, Zayne’s husband, looked human with pale skin but had large elf-like ears, ears bigger than Allura’s, and he was wearing a gold silk-like suit. 

His eyes landed on Zayne and he snatched his daughter's hand, pushing through the sea of people.

“Zayne!” He called, his voice full of relief. “Zayne!”

“Mama! Mama!” The little girl called, and once they finally reached the edge of the sea they ran fearlessly up the ramp to where Zayne was.

“ASH! TALI!” Zayne called out in reply, startling Kai who began to cry loudly, which caused the King and daughter to stop running towards them. Zayne frowned, his ears going down.

“Z-Zayne, who is that?” The King asked while he and the young Princess slowly approached.

“This… this is Kai.” He said, “I-I’m sorry… I-I couldn’t protect myself well enough to stop him and… I-I had a son… I-I hope that you will accept him.”

Keith watched cautiously as the King and little girl got closer, and after a moment the King softly held out his arms before hugging Zayne.

“Of course, my little Firebug. I love you and I love our new son.” The King looked down at Kai. Realizing he was blind his smile faltered, but only for a second. “We will make sure he has the best possible life. It’s not often a Prince is born.”

The little girl hugged their legs. “I’ll be a great big sister, Mama, I promise.” She smiled, “I will teach him how to be a great Princess.”

Zayne let out a laugh, “I’m sure you will, my little angel.” He hiccuped softly, crying into his husband’s shoulder. “I missed you so much.”

“We missed you too, Zayne. But you’re safe now. You’re safe and we won’t let anything bad ever happen to you again. I swear.”

Keith smiled, and all the worries he had about Zayne not being safe here went away. He and Kai would be safe and happy, and the lessons Zayne had taught him over the last few days were more than enough to help him focus on his own child when it came. Or at least, he hoped so.

 

They didn’t stay more than a few hours, enough to make sure that Zayne and his village would be protected from further attack. In return for bringing Zayne back safely, the King provided them with enough food to last them weeks. The best part about the situation was that the food tasted enough like human food that Keith was able to pig out on it all while knowing exactly what he was craving. But at the moment he was mostly just eating away his emotions. He was so upset having to say goodbye to Zayne and Kai; he had gotten attached to both of them and now looking at the empty crib in the corner of Lance’s room only looked and felt more depressing.

He would have to wait. 12 more weeks. He couldn’t hold his baby for 12 more weeks and it was slowly killing him. Now, on top of everything he was really dizzy, and the food that he was eating didn’t help the situation any. Even while just sitting in bed, eating pickle-like foods, he felt like he was going to fall right off. It was as though he had been on the “Gravitron” fair ride for over an hour non-stop, complete with the natural nausea that came with his pregnancy.

Keith sighed, putting the last bite of the pickle onto a plate before climbing out of bed. He felt terrible, absolutely terrible. He put his hand on his stomach, something that instantly caused the baby to kick. In such a tight squeeze it was now a typical response from his unborn child. They didn’t like feeling any more trapped than they already were. But as long as the baby kicked and moved around, Keith knew he could be patient.

He smiled, gathering pajamas up for himself as well as a towel. Maybe a shower would help; it might not help with the dizziness but it could at least hopefully help cool him down. He felt like he was melting at this point. Once he made it to the bathroom he stripped off his clothes, dropping them into a pile on the floor before he then climbed into the shower, turning on the water and letting the lukewarm water run over his body.

He closed his eyes, letting the water run over him for a moment, soaking his hair. It felt nice but the nice soon turned to panic when he opened his eyes. The dizziness washed over him, stronger than before. He took a step back, his foot slipping in the water and without the sense to catch himself he fell backwards, crashing hard on his side on the tile floor, his head making a painful and echoing crack when it hit the tile.

The world turned blurry, the water by his face turned red, and the water suddenly turned uncomfortably cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Decided to post another chapter today; because instead of spacing out my chapters like a responsible writer I like spamming you guys with as many as I can, and I mean who doesn't like cliffhangers :D


	68. Second Guessing

Lance wandered through the ship. He had decided to give Keith some time alone to deal with everything; he had gotten really close to Zayne and Kai and knew that he would have a hard time letting them go. Lance had seen the way Zayne taught him the proper way to hold a baby, as well as how to change a diaper and things about being a Galra Omega that Lance couldn’t even understand. He was glad that Zayne had managed to teach him all those things but now he was glad to have Keith all to himself. It was a selfish thing to be happy for, but he was happy about it all the same.

He walked into his room and frowned when he found it empty, but it wasn’t the first time it had happened. Keith often got uncomfortable in his room and would try sleeping in either his room or Red. Hell, he could even be resting in Black if he wanted to. Keith probably had wandered off to find a place to relax and be by himself; Lance wasn’t going to worry about it too much.

Lance walked over to the bed, picking up the plate that was on the bed and putting it on the bedside table. He then laid down on his bed, sprawling out over the sheets as he put his hands under his head. He wouldn’t admit out loud to this but he liked when Keith took his “alone time”, because it meant that he got to be alone too.

He loved Keith; at least he was pretty sure that he did. If he didn’t then he didn’t know what these emotions were, but there were sometimes when constantly dealing with his mood swings, his cravings, and worrying about him every second of every day that drove him crazy. There were just those days where he wished Keith never had gotten pregnant and that Keith could just go back to how he was before. He felt bad thinking this, of course, but it was hard not to sometimes.

Lance rolled over in bed with a sigh, his eyes landing on the crib as a smile formed. Those kinds of thoughts were hard to think though, especially when there was no going back. They were going to have a little baby of their own and there was nothing Lance could do but brace himself for it.

Figuring that Keith would find him if he needed him, Lance closed his eyes and decided to take a nap. When the baby came it would be harder to just sneak off and find a place to sleep, and since nothing was going on now, he might as well take as many naps as he could.

 

Lance ended up sleeping most of the day, which was strange. He hadn’t managed to sleep that good or that long since before he and Keith started dating. It was weird, and a little worrying. Was Keith okay? Was he having an existential crisis somewhere?

“Maybe I should look for him.” Lance sighed, getting out of bed and rubbing his eyes.

He wanted more time away from Keith, admittedly, but a the same time he knew Keith, and knew that if he was left alone for too long then he would get really sad and stuck in his thoughts. When that happened Keith would just suffer in silence and even if he weren’t pregnant, that wasn’t a healthy thing for him to do. He couldn’t blame himself for the small things like he had the constant habit of doing.

Lance made his way out of his room and across the hall to Keith’s room. He gently tapped on the door before opening it and walking inside. Keith wasn’t in there. A frown tugged its way onto Lance’s mouth as he looked down the hall. There was no sign of him walking around. Maybe he was in Red’s hanger? He didn’t know but he was suddenly starting to get a bad feeling that was clawing around in his stomach.

Lance sucked in a breath, forcing himself to stay calm as he made his way towards the hangers. There was no reason to panic; at least, not yet. Chances were that Keith was just asleep in Red like he did every so often. Still though, he couldn’t stop his walk from being faster than normal. Lance was almost running when he finally reached the hanger. He didn’t know why he was so worried. After all, it was Keith; he could handle himself most of the time…

“Hey, girl.” Lance held up his hand to her, thankful when she bowed in front of him, letting him climb in. “Keith?” He called, looking around with a frown. “Keith? Buddy? Where are you?”

Red was empty without any sign that Keith had been in there at all.

Lance made a more drastic run to Black’s hanger, and upon discovering that it was empty as well he let the panic sink in even more.

He kept trying to tell himself that Keith was fine, but not being able to find him as well as the bad feeling he had made it almost impossible to ignore the worries that he was having. So he began to search the entire castle, checking the training deck, the medical wing, the chambers, even the main sitting room. When he couldn’t find him in any of those places he ran to the Bridge, which was where everybody else was.

Shiro was the first to notice Lance.

“Lance? What’s wrong?” He asked.

“I’m not sure…” Lance said, “I-I just have a really bad feeling and I can’t find Keith… the Castle is too big to search on my own; will you guys help me look, please?”

“Of course.” Allura said, “We’ll each take a floor of the castle and search every room.”

“Good plan.” Shiro said, jogging to Lance and putting his hand on his shoulder while the others ran out of the room. “We’ll find him, Lance; I promise.” He said, then followed the others out of the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And you guys thought this would provide answers >:3


	69. River of Tears

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Have you seen my son?! He's about this tall, clearly gay but we haven't had the talk!"

“Keith!” Shiro called, running through the halls of the Castle, listening for anything that seemed off or out of place. He thought Lance had been overreacting at first, but now that he couldn’t find Keith either he was beginning to worry too. The Castle was big but somebody couldn’t just vanish like this.

Shiro turned a corner and kept running, the sound of his own breathing and his loud, echoing footsteps almost completely drowning out the sound of the shower running. Shiro still somehow managed to hear the water running and stopped in his tracks. Was Keith just taking a long shower? It could be possible, but Shiro knew he still had to check on him. As worried as Lance was it wouldn’t be right to go back without checking in on him.

Shiro knocked on the door. “Keith? Are you in there, buddy?”

There was no reply, which caused Shiro to frown.

“Keith?” He made sure to be louder this time as he tried to open the door.

It was locked. There was no reply. The water was running. There was no other choice.

Shiro took a step back before doing a hard roundhouse kick, his foot slamming hard next to the door handle, which gave out at the force and collapsed to the ground. The water that was spraying down was incredibly cold, and even when he wasn’t under the water Shiro couldn’t help but shiver. It took a lot for the Castle to run out of hot water, which suggested that if Keith was in here he had been in the shower for a very long time.

“Keith?” He walked over the door cautiously before looking into the shower, his blood running cold.

Keith was on the floor of the shower on his side, his fur soaked with water. He was pale in color and wasn’t even shivering, but the scariest part was that for the longest moment it didn’t look like Keith was breathing. Shiro was afraid to move, afraid to touch him and find that his friend- his brother- wasn’t breathing, but he knew he had to check.

Shiro walked over, slowly touching Keith’s neck. He was surprised when Keith let out a moan and moved away from the touch. The fear he had before at the thought of his friend being dead was quickly replaced by the determination to keep Keith alive. Shiro grabbed a towel off the rack, wrapping it around Keith before picking him up.

It was then that he saw a dark bruise on the side of Keith’s head that had been against the floor that was joined by a cut. No wonder Keith hadn’t answered; he hadn’t been able to.

“Hold on, Keith; I got you.” Shiro said, holding Keith close as he rushed out of the bathroom, holding his friend close.

He passed by Hunk who was the one who reported the situation back to the others over the loudspeaker.

Coran beat him to the Medical room and jumped into action when Shiro laid Keith on the bed. Coran put electrodes on Keith’s chest and around his lower stomach to keep an eye on not only Keith’s vitals but the baby’s as well. He then pulled over a tablet and began scanning Keith’s head and body for wounds. He was unusually silent.

“Keith!” Lance ran in with Allura, Pidge, Matt, and Hunk right on his heels. He ran to Keith’s side, touching Keith’s hand as he looked him over. “W-where was he?”

“The bathroom… I found him collapsed in the shower.” Shiro explained, taking hold of Matt’s hand. He wanted to hold Keith’s hand, but he knew that right now Lance needed that more and he couldn’t get in Coran’s way. Luckily, Matt was by his side and managed to keep him calm. His stomach was twisting up into knots as he looked at Keith. “I don’t know how long he was in there but the water was cold.”

“The Castle has enough hot water to last six hours.” Allura said. “W-which means…”

“He’s been trapped in there all day.” Hunk said.

Lance pulled Keith’s hand to his face, putting his forehead against the cold, wet fur. Lance was shaking and was clearly on the verge of tears while they all waited for Coran to give them some kind of word.

“He’s going to need time to rest.” Coran said after the longest time. “He has a minor concussion and he might have a cold from his time under the cold water but… he’ll be alright given time.”

“What about the baby?” Pidge asked with a frown.

“It’s alive; however I can’t tell you if it’s ‘fine’ or not. We don’t know what kind of effects a fall like that or being exposed to the cold water that long could have on them.” Coran said. “We’ll keep both of them hooked up to the machines for now, just to keep an eye on them. If the baby goes into distress… we might need to remove it or we could easily lose both of them.” He played with the curl of his mustache.

There was no reaction from Lance, which was worrying, but Shiro was thankful that Keith was going to be alright.

“Thank you, Coran.”

 

Lance looked at Keith, his heart aching more and more with every beat. The others had left but they seemed to check on him often. He hadn’t slept since they found Keith, and honestly he didn’t want to sleep. He wanted to be here when Keith woke up, no matter how long it took for that to happen.

So far it had been over 27 hours since they had found him. Keith’s temperature was back to normal, his breathing was even, and his heartbeat was strong. The baby was fine. Keith was fine. But Lance wasn’t fine.

All the thoughts that Lance had before his nap came back with a vengeance, eating away at him from the inside. How could he have thought those kinds of things? Of course he loved Keith; there was no doubt of that. He loved every bit of Keith and his personality; he loved the weird cravings and mood swings that came with Keith being pregnant. He was never going to leave Keith alone for that long ever again; he was never going to let himself fall asleep unless he was absolutely certain that Keith was safe.

His heart couldn’t take a close call like this. Not again.

“Lance, are you alright?” Shiro asked, walking in. “You haven’t moved…”

Lance felt his lip tremble. “I-I’m fine… I just… t-this was too close, Shiro. We-we could have lost him… I-I could have lost both of them…”

Shiro sat next to Lance, putting his hand on Lance’s back. “But you didn’t… just be thankful for that and learn from this… that’s all we can really do…”

“You make it sound so easy… I was questioning everything, Shiro. My relationship, this baby, why I’m still here, but… this made me realize… Beyond a shadow of a doubt… I love him.”

“I love you too…”

The weakened voice startled Lance, causing him to jump and look down. His eyes almost instantly filled with tears when he saw a set of purple eyes looking at him.

“Keith!” Lance stood up so fast that his chair fell, making a loud crash as it fell backwards. He then touched the side of Keith’s face, smiling when Keith leaned into it. “You’re awake!”

“Y-yeah… but what happened?”

“I-I’ll explain everything later.” Lance said, bending down and hugging Keith with a soft hiccup as tears slid down his face. “J-just let me enjoy you being awake. Please…”

 

“I can’t believe I fainted in the shower.” Sighed Keith. “That’s such a stupid thing to do.” He was blushing slightly while he let Lance prop him up. He was sitting up in the medical bay bed with enough pillows behind him to build a massive pillow fort. “I feel like a typical damsel-in-distress.”

Lance looked at Keith, still holding his hand. “Well then, I guess I’ll just have to come to your rescue… though, in this case Shiro was the one to save you this time. It’s scary to think that if he had checked any other floor that you might not be-”

“But I am, Lance; I’m fine. The baby is fine. I’ll just have to be more careful from now on, is all.” Keith smiled. “I’m sorry for the scare.”

“It’s okay, but… don’t do it again. I don’t think my heart could take seeing you like that again.”

Keith smiled. “Fine, fine. But… you know… next time I need to shower I might need company.” He looked at Lance, who blushed with a big grin.

“I wouldn’t mind.”


	70. Safety Measures

Pidge sighed, glancing at the crystalline mobile nearby. It seemed like everyone they met was showering Keith with gifts for the baby, which wasn’t a bad thing; they probably knew more than any of them did. But now she felt a bit useless. She wanted to get in on it; she could make something for the baby. The question was, what? What did they already have? What did they need? She hadn’t exactly been keeping close track of things like that, which was honestly her own fault.

She ruffled her hair with a frustrated sigh, looking up as Hunk came in.

“Have you made anything for the baby?”

Hunk raised an eyebrow. “No? Why do you ask? I mean, I make food for Keith; that’s kinda helping the baby.”

“Everyone’s giving Keith baby stuff and I feel left out.” Pidge admitted, crossing her arms with a huff.

“Well, you don’t have to make something now; you could wait until the baby’s born.”

“But I can do something now, probably. I just can’t figure out what to make.”

“Well… he’s got blankets and a mobile, and I think I saw some kind of crib in Lance’s room when we were looking for Keith.”

“Keith just needs some kind of beeper he can press when he gets into trouble like that.” Pidge sighed, frowning for a second before her face lit up. “Baby monitors! Little ones that can follow them around like Rover did! They can use them now and then when the baby’s born they can leave one at the crib!”

“And it could dispense snacks when the baby gets hungry! Well, I mean, I don’t know what the baby would eat so it’d have to be empty for now. But it can still have the compartment for it! Unless, you know, it eats meat and then I think Keith and Lance can deal with that, but yeah!”

“Come on, help me draw up a blueprint!”

 

“Are you sure you should be standing so soon?” Lance asked.

“‘So soon’?” Keith laughed. “Lance, I’ve spent two days in bed; if I stay another day in that bed my tail is going to fall off.”

Lance blushed and nodded slowly. “Right, you’re right.”

During the past two days Lance hadn’t left Keith’s side. In fact the only time he did leave the room was to go to the bathroom, and even then he would make sure that somebody was next to Keith. It was a little annoying to have somebody by him all the time, but Keith understood that he had given all his friends a massive scare and he knew that he could deal with having them worry about him until they felt comfortable enough to let him wander around on his own.

It would take some time, but Keith worried that the second he was left to wander around on his own he would collapse again. It was scary; before all of this happened he didn’t care if he died so long as his friends were safe, but recently things had changed. He didn’t want to die. He didn’t want to leave Lance by himself or make any of his friends sad or scared. He would try to be more careful now… but he still worried that history would repeat itself.

Keith glanced at Lance, a slight blush forming on his face as he reached out, gently taking Lance’s hand in his before he looked down at the floor, his ears going down with embarrassment. Lance smiled brightly, tightening his grip on Keith's hand as they continued walking along.

Keith would admit that hearing what Lance had said about second-guessing everything had hurt, a lot. But him finishing all of that with an ‘I love him’ made everything better, and even just thinking about it caused his heart to race again. He just wished there was more he could do to show his love for Lance. Of course he had a few ideas, but at the moment he guessed that any of the ideas would be shot down or put off for a while. Keith was still tired and the team wouldn’t let him do what he wanted until they were sure that he would be safe walking around on his own again, let alone doing anything else.

Keith put his head on Lance’s shoulder with a soft smile, feeling Lance tense up before kissing the top of Keith’s head lovingly.

“What are you thinking about, Keith?” Lance asked.

“A lot of things, but mostly about you and the baby.” Keith shrugged, putting his free hand on his stomach. “It’s been a hard few days but the baby seems fine, so… that’s good.”

Lance smiled, stopping in the middle of the walkway, which forced Keith to stop walking as well. He then looked at Keith, looking him over and causing him to blush, his ears going down as he looked away.

“W-what?”

“Just looking at ya.” Lance said, his eyes lingering over his chest and stomach for a moment. Lance walked over, running his hand gently over Keith’s stomach. Keith was mostly flat still but at the very bottom of his stomach there was a barely noticeable bump. “Your bump is forming.” He noted and Keith blushed and looked down.

He could see what Lance meant; it was very small but compared to his typical frame it was definitely out there. Keith ran his hand up and down his stomach, feeling the bump. Keith smiled slightly; it was feeling much more real now that he could see what he had been feeling for so long.

“I-I’ll be in my ninth week in a few days so it’s about time for this to form anyways…”

“You know what else this means though, right?” Lance lit up. “From what the book says once you reach week nine your scent won’t be as strong; people won’t try to hurt you any more! We can explore more planets and not have to worry about everybody wanting to hurt you.”

While this idea was appealing, it wasn’t at the same time because as much as he wanted to wander around the planets, he didn’t want his friends to be in danger for being around him. They had to put off a lot of their humanitarian actions because it was too dangerous for Keith to wander with them. Keith wrapped his tail around his stomach, letting out a soft sigh as he put his arms around Lance’s shoulders. He then stood on his tiptoes before kissing Lance on the lips.

Lance blushed at the sudden touch, but didn’t hesitate much as he wrapped his arms around Keith’s hips, pulling him close, which caused Keith to let out a surprised moan. Lance took a step towards Keith, his knee going between Keith’s legs, causing the Galra to blush even harder as he shuddered. It was only then that Lance backed up.

“S-sorry.” Lance said.

“For what?” Keith asked, trying not to feel too excited from the touching he had gotten. He knew it couldn’t have been long since they had sex but it felt as though it had been forever. This heat was going to drive him crazy.

“You were hurt, Keith. I need to let you rest.”

Keith’s ears went down. Damn it. He knew this was coming but still he was disappointed. He wanted to plead with Lance or attempt to change his mind, but he knew that wouldn’t be right and forced a smile on his face. “Okay, okay. You win, but you’re making it up to me soon, okay?” He said with a wink and Lance blushed softly.

“I can do that.” He said with a smile.

“Good.” Keith beamed happily, taking Lance’s hand yet again and leading him further down the hall in the direction of the Bridge.

 

Allura frowned, looking at the map in front of her. The attacks that had once seemed constant had suddenly stopped without a single report coming in. Not even the Blade of Marmora or the Rebellion had run into any problems lately. What were the Galra planning? Was this because of the Galran Prince? This ‘Lotor’ character? What was he planning? Why did he stop these attacks?

She rubbed her temples with a soft sigh. She didn’t want to bother anybody with this, especially not Lance or Keith. They had so much on their plate right now that her bringing up these questions and concerns could only frustrate and bother them even more. Keith had already passed out, which was something that she didn’t want a repeat of, and she guessed that nobody else wanted it to repeat either.

“Princess, is something the matter?” Coran asked.

Allura sighed. “Coran… things are quiet, and while I know I should be thankful for this time without enemies…” Allura sighed. “It just makes me more worried about things to come in the future.”

Coran frowned softly, putting the tray of tea he had been carrying in front of her. “We should take this time to prepare for an attack in case it happens, but we also should also take this time to relax and enjoy the freedom from battle that we’ve already had.”

“You’re right. Thank you, Coran. I’ll try to relax… thank you for the tea.”

“Any time, Princess.” He said with a smile before walking out of the room.


	71. Contest!!!! (Authors Note)

Hello everybody!

I have been considering doing this for a long time and after talking to NamelessIceGoddess and my Fiance (JesseK21) I decided to go for it!

I am holding a contest starting from tomorrow (February 26th) until March 14th! To enter this contest all you have to do is draw your favorite character from this story! From a canon character (one from the show) or an Original Character of mine (Zayne, Kai, ect) or even a scene from this series that you like! Then post it to Tumblr, Twitter, or any other social media site and post the link in the comments ON THIS CHAPTER! It can be NSFW or SFW I will take anything!

The winner will be put in a future chapter!

There is no restrictions to this contest; you can be of any age and it can be of anything : ) as long as it is entered between that time line. If you don't want anybody else to see your art feel free to Private Message me over Tumblr under the username Maxine-Strongheart. If you have any questions feel free to ask them in the comments, I check them every day :D

The next chapter might take a few days to come out but hopefully it won't take too long! Love ya'll and good luck! 

 

Winners will be announced on March 15th :D


	72. The Godfather

Keith blinked, opening his eyes slowly. He was laying in Lance’s bed, his head on Lance’s shoulder and his arm across Lance’s chest. Lance had his arms wrapped around Keith, his hand behind Keith’s back and on his ribcage. Keith felt so warm and so safe; he simply didn’t feel as though anything could make this moment any better. Though that was quickly disproven when Lance kissed Keith’s forehead.

“Good morning, beautiful.” He said, making Keith blush, his ears going down in embarrassment.

He buried his face into Lance’s chest. “Mornin’...”

“What time is it?” Lance asked with a yawn.

“Um…” He looked over by the door where a clock was. “Just past 6 am.”

“Hm… a little too early to do anything…” He said, then thought and smiled. “You hungry, Keith?”

Keith’s stomach growled at the thought of food. “Always.”

“Well, Hunk probably isn’t awake yet so you and I will just have to see what we can find.” Lance and Keith sat up, but Keith stayed cuddled close to him, trying to sap as much heat from Lance as he could. “Anything sound good?”

“Everything sounds good.” Keith admitted, then blushed slightly. “Um.. Lance?”

“Yeah?”

Keith hesitated for a moment, then blushed darkly. “I-I-I, um… I-I love you.”

Lance smiled, “I love you too, Keith.” He touched Keith’s face softly, lifting Keith’s chin to make Keith look at him before he kissed him.

Keith tried to keep calm but it was hard to do when every time Lance touched him it went straight to his groin. It was more than a little frustrating, but Keith hoped that if he made it through the night he and Lance would be able to do something, but at the moment he was just as hungry as he was horny.

Keith shuddered slightly, giving a soft push against Lance’s chest. “W-we should go eat. I-I, um… I’m really hungry.”

“Okay.” Lance chuckled.

Keith climbed out of bed, sliding out of his pajamas and into his black t-shirt and jeans, which recently had needed to be fixed for his tail to comfortably move around, but now he had another problem. The pants were going to get really tight as Keith got larger with his pregnancy, which was worrying. Aside from his paladin armor and pajamas these were the only pants he owned. If he got too big for his jeans would he be able to wear his armor? He didn’t mind sleeping in just his boxers, but if they got into a fight then he would need his armor.

Keith looked at Lance, smiling as Lance pulled on his bathrobe over his boxer pants. He then slipped on his slippers, looking up when Keith let out a slight chuckle.

“What’s so funny?” Lance asked.

“You’re a dork.” Keith said, walking out of the bedroom.

Lance let out an offended sound, chasing after him. “How dare you; first of all, I am the King of dorks. And if I'm a dork then you’re adorkable.”

“Adorkable? What does that even mean?” Keith asked, blushing slightly when Lance took his hand.

“Well, it’s a mix between adorable and a dork. Adorkable.” He smiled proudly.

Keith looked away shyly. “T-that can’t be a real thing.”

“Oh, it’s totally a real thing. And if I’m the King of Dorks then you’re the Queen of Adorkable boyfriends.”

Keith’s ears went down as he felt himself become impossibly redder. “W-w-whatever…” He said, giving Lance’s hand a gentle squeeze.

 

They weren’t surprised to find that they were the first ones in the kitchen, though Keith guessed that they weren’t the only ones awake. Matt and Pidge almost always stayed up late working on something and sometimes went days on end without sleep, and then there was Shiro who was constantly plagued with nightmares and had a hard time staying in bed doing nothing. Though with Shiro dating Matt, part of Keith was hoping that the two slept better or at least took better care of themselves and each other.

Keith looked at Lance, watching him with a slight smile on his face. Lance was gathering a bunch of different foods, putting them on a plate and putting it on the table in front of Keith.

“Let’s dig in!” Lance smiled, then tilted his head slightly. “Keith? Are you alright?”

Keith jumped and blushed. “Y-y-yeah. You’re just… really pretty…” He admitted.

“Aww; if I’m pretty, then you’re gorgeous.”

Keith put his head down on the table, his ears going down as he blushed. “N-no… I-I’m not…”

“Yes you are, and everytime you deny it, it just proves to me how gorgeous you are.” Lance leaned over, kissing the tip of Keith’s ear, causing him to gasp in surprise at the strange and unusual feeling.

“W-w-what are you doing?” He squeaked.

“I was just giving you a kiss, but the noise you made just now makes me want to do more.” Lance smirked and Keith shivered at the possible implications.

“U-um-”

“Hey guys.” Pidge said, causing Keith to jump and turn towards her.

“P-Pidge! Hey, good morning.” He smiled, attempting to look as innocent as possible. 

“Am I interrupting something?” She asked with a large smirk on her face.

“N-nope! Nothing at all.” Keith said and Lance laughed.

“What’s up, Pidge?”

“Nothing; Hunk and I stayed up all night working on something. He just went to bed and I decided to get a snack before I took a nap too.”

“What were you guys working on?” Lance wondered.

“It’s a surprise.” She winked.

“A surprise?” Keith and Lance looked at each other curiously before Keith shrugged.

“Yep! It’ll be done by tomorrow so you guys will just have to wait until then.” She smiled, grabbing some of the food that Lance had pulled out.

“Alright, but… Pidge, you don’t need to get us anything; nobody does.” Keith said.

Part of him was honestly thankful for all the gifts simply because everything they had gotten was important for the baby when it came, but at the same time he felt bad because they were putting their friends out so much. He was the mother-father person; shouldn’t he be providing for the baby? It wasn’t his friends’ responsibility to take care of his baby. Keith’s ears went down sadly, his tail wrapping around the leg of the chair. Could he even provide for the baby when it came?

Keith grabbed some food, quickly stuffing it in his mouth. If he didn’t start eating, he was going to start crying and he didn’t want to worry anybody with his tears.

“Yeah, well, I wanna. Did Coran ever figure out why you passed out?” Pidge asked and Keith gulped down the food.

“Y-yeah. Well, during pregnancies- doesn’t matter if it’s human or Galra -your body temperature goes up quite a bit, and with the fur covering me and everything I just… overheated.” Keith shrugged. “But the worst part is when I reach about 12 weeks in my temperature will get even higher, so just walking around could be dangerous in the future.”

“Sounds rough.” Pidge said sympathetically, though Keith could tell that she wasn’t too surprised by this news. Keith could guess it was because she had read the book just about as many times as he and Lance had by now. “Speaking of which… the day after tomorrow you reach your 9th week, right?”

“Y-yeah?”

Pidge smiled brightly. “Yay!”

“Yay?” Lance and Keith questioned together.

“Why yay?” Wondered Keith.

“Because that means you’re going to get a bump! This is so exciting! Growing up I didn’t get to meet a lot of pregnant people or babies- I mean, I was the youngest in my family and we didn’t really talk to our cousins or any of that -so this is all so new to me! Not to mention that this is completely out of Earth’s realm of ‘normal’ so I’m excited to see all of this play out!”

Keith and Lance looked at each other before Keith cleared his throat.

“W-well, Pidge…” He lifted up his shirt a little, letting Pidge see his stomach. It was hardly noticeable but it was enough to excite the young girl, who lit up.

“Oh my god!” She ran over. “Can I… can I feel? Please? Is that too weird to ask?”

Keith laughed. “No, it’s not too weird. Go ahead.”

Pidge smiled, slowly reaching her hand out and putting it on his stomach. “Wow… it’s stiff.” She said, poking it gently.

“Well, yeah.” Laughed Lance. “There’s something in there.”

Pidge blushed, glaring at Lance slightly. “Well duh, I know that but… I thought it would still be kinda squishy, you know?”

Keith smiled, letting out a chuckle when the baby kicked and Pidge jumped.

“What the- was that the baby?!” She asked curiously.

Keith nodded. “Yep, they’re quite the wiggle worm. They move around a lot, especially when there’s pressure on our side. They don’t like being squished.”

“Oh!” Pidge moved her hand away quickly. “Sorry, little one.” She smiled. “Well… I’m going to go take a nap; come find me if you guys need anything, alright?”

“Thanks, Pidge.” Lance smiled. “Goodnight.”

“Night.” Pidge waved, walking away.

 

Keith was thankful for the time alone, even though it was just a few minutes while he sat on the couch and Lance went to the bathroom. Times like these would likely be the only times he ever got to be by himself anymore after what had happened a few days ago, though he didn’t blame anybody for being worried about him. He would be worried too if this happened to somebody else in their group. He leaned back on the couch, putting his feet up before he put his hands behind his head with a relieved sigh, though the relief only lasted for a few moments before the door opened.

“Hey, Keith.” Shiro said and Keith looked over and slightly smiled.

“Hey.”

Shiro walked over and gently patted Keith’s head, causing the smaller male to blush before Shiro sat down next to his head. “What are you up to?” He asked.

“Nothing much; just thinking about how nice it was to be alone.” He said and Shiro frowned.

“Sorry, do you want me to leave?”

“No.” Keith said quickly, sliding up and putting his head on Shiro’s lap. “You’re my hostage now; pet my head.”

Shiro chuckled, doing as he was told. “Yes sir, but… you don’t like having your head touched…”

“I just want attention right now, but I also want to be alone at the same time. You know? I want to be alone and spend what little time I have by myself but at the same time I just… wanna… ya know?”

Shiro blushed. “You’re talking to the wrong guy, Keith.”

Keith groaned. “I know that! I just… I don’t want to try and get Lance to do it with me when he’s clearly worried about me passing out.” He put his hand over his eyes. “I don’t know; maybe I’ll just use what the Olkari gave me.” He said, then felt himself blush and press his lips tightly together.

“What did the Olkari give you?” Shiro asked, the smile obvious just by the sound of his voice.

“Nothing!” Keith said, then squeaked when Shiro grabbed Keith’s wrists and pulled them away from his face. 

Shiro had the smile on his face that he always did when he was about to give Keith a hard time, and Keith knew damn well that he wasn’t going to be able to get out of this one so easily. Keith’s ears went down, his face warming up.

“If it were nothing you wouldn’t be so shy about it.”

“Shiro, drop it.” Squeaked Keith, struggling against the older man’s grip. “I-It’s nothing! Really! Nothing; they didn’t give me anything!”

“No? Oh, then I guess it wouldn’t be a big deal if I went snooping in your room?” Shiro chuckled.

“Don’t you dare!” Keith struggled, then froze. “Shiro, wait.”

Shiro tilted his head, then frowned when Keith broke his wrist free, grabbed Shiro’s hand, and put it against his stomach just in time for the baby to kick hard against the outside. Shiro blinked in confusion for a second before it seemed to dawn on him.

“Woah…”

Keith let out a snort. “Yeah; that’s your godchild.”

Shiro blushed slightly, letting go of Keith’s other wrist. “Right… I forgot that was a thing.” He admitted with a smile. “Thank you, Keith; it means a lot… I’m sorry that I didn’t take the news so well the first time around.”

Keith smiled softly. “Hey, honestly, none of us did. I should have been more honest about it when you asked me the first time. If I had you wouldn’t need to apologize in the first place.”

“Well, now we know and we can prepare for it. Oh! That reminds me; we’re going to be stopping at a rebel base the day after tomorrow, so if you want to stay on the ship you should let us know beforehand so we can choose who to have stay with you.”

“Right… okay.” Keith smiled. Honestly he knew that everybody would want to explore and see the rebel base, but at the same time he himself really didn’t want to go; at least, at the moment he didn’t want to. He just wanted to sleep all day. “I’ll think about it and let you know.” He smiled.


	73. Coran Coran The Gorgeous Man

The days recently had gotten longer and slower; at least that’s how it felt to Keith, though being unable to do a lot of things that he normally would be doing could have had a part in that. So when he couldn’t stand sitting around watching the others train or do things that he could no longer do, he decided to sneak off and make his way towards Red. Though he didn’t make it far before Coran spotted him.

“Going somewhere, Keith?” Coran asked and Keith tensed up.

“Y-yeah; I’m going to Red’s hanger. She gets lonely if I don’t come visit her, and everytime something new happens with the baby and I don’t tell her about it she yells at me.”

“Well… allow me to accompany you. I know you are less likely to pass out today than you were the other day but still I worry.”

Keith smiled softly. “Alright.” He shrugged. He had been planning to just sit in Red for a while and talk to her but if it made everybody more comfortable he didn’t mind having Coran around. Plus under all the weirdness of Coran he was the closest thing to an ‘uncle’ that Keith ever had, so spending time with him wasn’t so bad.

Coran and Keith walked down the hallway together. Coran was marking things down on the tablet he often carried before he looked at Keith and smiled.

“How are you feeling today?” He asked.

“Good; well, better.” Keith shrugged. “I still feel hot and dizzy sometimes, but I’m okay other that that.”

“You have much more color to your face than you did a few days ago.” Coran pointed out. “You had everybody worried; but not me, of course. I knew you would be fine the entire time.” He said, puffing out his chest. “I wasn’t worried at all.”

“No?” Keith smirked. “Because I heard from Hunk that you cried when you realized that I was going to be okay.” He smiled.

Coran let out a gasp, blushing slightly. “Well, I have no idea what he could be talking about.” He said quickly.

“Of course you don’t.”

The two walked a little further in silence before Coran spoke up yet again. Coran was much like Lance in the way that he constantly had to fill the silence or else he got uncomfortable, though Keith found himself minding less and less as time went on.

“You have changed a lot over these last few weeks.” Coran noted, causing Keith to look at him with a ‘no duh’ expression.

“Well… yeah, Coran. I’m purple now, for one.” He said, feeling rather dumb for having to state the obvious.

“No! That’s not what I meant.” Coran shook his head. “When we first met you were very hostile towards all of us; always looking to find your own place, but you’ve changed slowly over time. Lately, you’ve made the biggest changes. Even though you’re still uncomfortable around people you make it a point to stay close to everybody. You’re taking better care of yourself and you’re not running off to do something stupid.” He gave Keith a pat on the back. “Though I doubt that will last long.” He laughed.

Keith smiled slightly, looking over at him. “Coran… thank you. For everything you do.” He said, and then looked away when Coran looked at him quickly. “Nobody says it nearly enough… especially not me, so… thank you. We may be the Paladins of the Lions… but YOU are the heart of this team. At the end of the day you inspire all of us to keep going, you give us motivational speeches when we need them, take care of us when we’re hurt, and make sure that we always have plenty of food on the ship for when we get hungry after battles. You keep the Castle running at all times of the day and… that means a lot to all of us.” Keith glanced back up at Coran, just to see large puppy dog tears in his blue eyes. “C-Coran!? Wh-why are you crying?!” Keith asked, then squeaked when Coran pulled him into a hug.

“Thank you, Keith. It means so much to hear somebody say that.”

Keith blushed slightly, letting Coran hug onto him for a while longer before they continued on their way.

 

Keith was thankful when he finally made it to Red, who seemed more than a little excited to see him. She laid down instantly, letting him sit against her paw by her face. The cold metal was comforting to his warm figure, and with her by his side Coran was comfortable leaving Keith alone. If this was as ‘alone’ as he was going to get then Keith was going to take it. He didn’t mind having Red around him; in fact, aside from Shiro and Lance Red would probably qualify as his best friend.

-It has been a while, Keith… is everything alright?- Red asked. -I sensed something happened, but… I couldn’t reach you. The Castle halls are too small. They’re not very Lion-friendly.-

Keith smiled softly. “I’m alright, Red. I’m alright.” He promised, patting her face softly.

-Are you sure?-

“Yeah, I’m sure. Everything is fine; you don’t have to worry so much about me, okay?” Keith smiled.

-Of course I have to worry about you; if I don’t then I’m not doing my job. Now, how are you feeling? How is the baby? Are they moving?-

“Not right now they’re not.” Keith smiled. “But yeah… they’re alright. I’ll be 9 weeks the day after tomorrow, so… the baby bump will probably become more obvious…” He knew he didn’t sound very excited about that part.

-Is that a bad thing?- She asked.

“Ah… um, I don’t know. I mean, I know everybody is excited to see the baby bump; especially Lance, but… I’m not so sure. I already feel fat as hell, and… if I have to wear my armor… I-I mean, what if it doesn’t fit?” Keith let his worry come out. “W-what if one day we’re in the middle of a big fight but I can’t put my suit on because I'm too big?”

Red let out a hum that almost seemed like a chuckle. -Keith, I don’t think you have to worry so much about that. Take a look at Hunk, for example. He is larger than all of you yet his armor fits him perfectly. The armor is very flexible and will easily take on whatever shape you do. The only thing that might get a little tight is the chest piece, but even that should stretch out after a while too. If you worry about that still though, you can talk to the Princess or Coran. I’m sure they can help you figure something out.-

Keith knew Red was right; she was always right. “Yeah… I just don’t want to be any more of a burden than I already have, you know?” He said gently, rubbing the back of his neck.

-Stop that.- She growled. -You are NOT a burden; you never have been and you never will be. You are a part of our team and our family, and this little baby will be just as big of a part of it as you are.- She nudged him very gently, which with her size and strength still nearly knocked him over. -Now, what else comes with week 9? Tell me everything so I can be ready, and then after that I want the more juicy details.-

“W-what kind of details?” Keith asked, feeling his face warm up as Red purred.

-The sexy kind. You still owe me for that time with Blue.-

Keith covered his face. “God, why are you like this?” He asked, and Red let out what sounded like a chuckle.

-It’s just how I am, and you know you wouldn’t have me any other way.-

Keith sighed. She had him on that one. “Okay, okay, um… let me think… according to what the book said I’m going to get my bump, and the mating scent will go away so it’ll be safer for me to walk around on other planets and around other people. Oh, and I might be able to know the gender around this time…”

-Oooh! What do you hope it is? I hope it’s a little girl!- She said. -In fact, us Lions all have little bets going on. Me and Rose and Yellow all think the baby is going to be a girl, but Coal and Blue are dead set that it’s going to be a boy. But they’re just biased because they’re old-fashioned and think the best warriors are boys. Which is dumb seeing how Blue let Allura drive him around for a while but ah well; what can you do?- She chuckled. -Do you have names picked out?-

“O-oh, yeah. If it’s a boy we’re thinking Apollo or Atlas, and if it’s a girl Nova or Pandora.”

-Space names!- She said, her tail wagging happily. -I LOVE IT!-

“Yeah? You don’t think they’re too cheesy?”

-Cheesy? What does Cheese have to do with anything?- She wondered and Keith chuckled.

“Nevermind.” He shook his head.

-Oh! Cheese is that human food, right? Blue told me all about it after Lance told him! But… I still don’t understand what cheese has to do with names for babies. Do you name babies after cheese? Is there a Keith cheese where you come from? And a Lance cheese? I wonder how they would taste.-


	74. Care

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in a strange mood when I wrote this so... have some smut.

Lance walked into Red’s hanger and smiled when he saw Keith laying next to her massive paws, sound asleep and letting out soft snores as he laid on his side. His tail swayed even in his sleep and his ears twitched. Lance shook his head softly, walking towards Keith.

“Hey, Red.” He said, looking at the Red Lion with a smile.

Red hadn’t said much to him since Lance had gone back to driving Blue, but he guessed that if she really wanted to she would still be able to. It was enough, for him at least, that she still even responded to him, turning her head to look at him or letting out a purr-like sound to let them know that she was still listening.

He knelt next to Keith, gently pushing his black hair out of the way and letting him see Keith’s beautiful face. His lips were slightly parted as he breathed and his eyes were softly closed. Lance gently put his left arm under Keith’s knees while the other went to his back. Then, after a bit of struggling, he pulled Keith into his arms, holding him closely.

“Thank you for keeping an eye on him; I’m going to be taking him to bed, okay? Goodnight.”

Lance took a few steps, then froze when Red responded.

-Take care of him, Lance. Both of them.-

Lance looked back at Red and smiled. “I will.” He promised.

Lance carried Keith out of the room and down the hallway in the direction of their bedroom. Lance hummed softly, mostly to himself even though he knew Keith could hear him, and the possibility of the baby being able to hear him got higher every day. They were just down the hall from the room when Lance realized that Keith was beginning to hum along with him, his eyes slightly open as he stared at Lance.

Lance blushed slightly. “Hey, sorry, did I wake you?” He asked.

Keith shook his head. “No, the baby started kicking.” He said, nuzzling against Lance’s chest. “What time is it?”

“Just past eight; you slept all day. We all checked on you this time, though. I also took some food to our room so if you get hungry you can eat without having to leave the room.”

Keith nodded. “That sounds nice…” He blushed slightly, looking away.

“Is something wrong?” Lance asked, pushing the door to their room open and setting Keith on the bed before sitting at his feet.

Keith sat there for a moment before grabbing the front of Lance’s shirt, pulling him forward. He pressed their lips together, closing his eyes tightly. Lance blushed, shocked for a second before he kissed back, reaching up and gently touching Keith’s face, running his thumb across Keith’s cheek. Lance jumped slightly when Keith licked his lip, causing Lance to blush and open his mouth slightly while their tongues began to explore each others mouth’s, wrapping around each other.

Lance then shuddered and arched his back in shock when Keith ran his hand under his shirt. Lance quickly grabbed his hand and pulled away from the kiss.

“W-wait, K-Keith.” He said, his face bright red. “W-we shouldn’t; y-you could faint again.”

Keith’s ears went down slightly. “Lance, please.” He said, almost begging. “H-hearing you tell me you loved me the other day… I-I’m having a hard time keeping it in. I-I just want to touch you and make you feel good.” Keith slowly pushed Lance down on the bed, pinning his shoulders. “Can I? P-please?”

Lance hesitated. “O-okay, but if it gets too much you have to promise to stop, okay?”

Keith’s ears went up excitedly, his tail starting to sway. “Okay.” He said, giving Lance a gentle kiss on the lips before sliding down.

Lance wasn’t quite sure what Keith was doing at first, but once Keith undid Lance’s pants and pulled them and his boxers down, freeing his hard cock from his suddenly-binding clothing, it hit him. Keith brought his lips down, slowly dragging his tongue up his shaft. Lance gasped, covering his mouth instinctually as a chill ran up his spine.

“K-Keith?” He panted, then moaned when Keith wrapped his mouth around his cock, slowly twirling his tongue around the head. It was sloppy, and it was clear that Keith hadn’t done this before, which honestly just made it that much better for Lance. Being Keith’s first anything was incredible, but something like this made it even better.

Keith slowly began moving his head up and down, making it hard for Lance not to thrust his hips up. The last thing he wanted was to accidentally choke Keith, but it was kind of hard to focus. He could feel Keith’s teeth slowly sliding across the skin but it didn’t hurt, and Keith was clearly doing his best not to hurt him. He slowly went further and further down on Lance until Keith reached as far as he could physically handle, which was just over half of it.

Keith braced his hands on Lance’s hips, pushing himself up and down on Lance’s cock, going almost all the way up before slowly pushing his way back down again, his ears going down slightly. Keith was blushing with tears in the corners of his eyes, and it only caused Lance to get impossibly harder.

God, he was so cute.

Keith started going down faster on Lance, going lower and faster, which caused Lance to moan.

“W-w-wait, K-Keith.” Lance said, putting his hand on Keith’s head softly. “I-I-I can’t; I’m going to cum.”

Keith didn’t care and continued moving, his tail swaying ever so slightly. It was only a few more times before Lance did just as he said he was, cumming inside of Keith’s mouth. Keith froze, closing his eyes tightly as he slowly pulled his mouth away and gulped down as much as he could, some dripping down his chin and onto the bed between them. Keith shuddered slightly, then smiled at Lance.

“Y-you…” Lance covered his mouth, a dark blush on his face. “H-how… why?”

Keith smiled. “It’s okay, but…” He looked down at his own lap with a blush. “Can I have some help?”

Lance blushed, tackling Keith down and pinning him to the bed as he kissed him, ignoring the salty, bitter taste from Keith’s mouth. Their tongues wrapped around each other as Lance slid his hands under Keith’s shirt, running it up to Keith’s chest and nipple. Keith moaned into the kiss as Lance softly pinched and twisted the right nipple before pulling apart from him.

Lance could already feel himself getting hard again as he looked down at the man he loved. He was panting hard, his shirt rolled up under his arms and his pants pulled slightly down, showing the v-line on his hips and a blush covering his entire face that even seemed to tint his shoulders. Lance bent down, kissing down Keith’s chest and stopping above his left nipple, giving it a soft lick and nibble that caused Keith to moan and cover his mouth.

“W-wait, th-that’s sensitive!” Keith squeaked.

Lance hummed softly, spinning his tongue around his nipple and making Keith shudder and wiggle under the pleasure.

While Lance continued sucking on Keith’s left nipple, his left hand kept the other nipple occupied and Lance slid his free hand down, pushing down Keith’s pants and boxers and exposing his hard member to the cold air of the bedroom. He then softly grabbed onto Keith’s cock, rubbing it up and down slowly. Keith moaned, gasping.

Lance gave a soft bite to Keith’s nipple before kissing down his chest and stomach, biting in different locations and leaving multiple hickies on his skin, which was difficult considering that everything was covered in the soft chinchilla-like fur and it tickled like hell. Keith’s ears were down as he panted, shuddering as Lance sat up, pulling off Keith’s pants and boxers the rest of the way and tossing them to the floor. Lance then pulled off his own shirt, pants, and boxers. Even in the normally cold room Lance was already boiling on the inside. He couldn’t wait; he was so excited.

Lance dug by the pillow, grabbing a bottle of lube and pouring a generous amount on his hand before pushing two of his fingers into Keith. Keith gasped, grabbing onto the sheets next to his head.

“C-cold!” He squeaked and Lance chuckled, kissing Keith gently on the nose.

“Sorry.” Lance said, slowly moving his fingers in and out, carefully stretching Keith out. Keith was always really tight, but he also stretched out easily enough if given enough preparation. It didn’t take much wiggling of his fingers to stretch him out enough to push a third finger into him.

Keith moaned, tears of pleasure forming in the corners of his eyes. Keith tightened slightly around Lance’s hand, making it harder for Lance to control himself. 

“Keith, is it okay for me to…?” He asked, trailing off when Keith nodded enthusiastically.

Lance slowly pulled out his hand out and pushed his way into Keith, who moaned softly, getting slightly louder with every inch that pushed into him.

“Keith, are you alright?” Lance asked, wanting to make sure Keith wasn’t pushing himself. He gently touched Keith’s face after finally getting all the way inside of him.

“Y-yeah.” 

“Okay, I’m going to start moving.” Lance said, and Keith nodded.

Lance pulled out and slowly pushed back in, causing Keith to let out a low moan, wrapping his legs around Lance hips. Keith was shuddering in pleasure under him, his back slightly arched as the thrusting began to pick up. Keith was so cute in this kind of position, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he panted, his nails digging into the sheets, tears in the corners of his eyes, his ears down. He was adorable.

Lance began thrusting slightly faster, bending forward and gently biting the crook of Keith’s neck, causing him to let out a loud gasp, the tears dripping down his cheeks. Lance licked the area before biting it again, putting his arms under Keith, hugging him and pulling them both up so that Keith was sitting on his lap.

Keith clung to Lance, panting hard as Lance continued his assault on Keith’s neck, all while not stopping his thrusts. Keith was shaking, his breathing picking up.

“L-Lance, I’m going to…” He shuddered slightly as Lance dragged his nails down Keith’s back. “Ah!” Keith moaned out, cumming as he arched his back.

Lance stopped only for a second to let Keith catch his breath before he continued thrusting, tugging at Keith’s hair with one hand while the other went to his front, running his thumb over his nipple once again, twisting and pinching it.

“L-Lance, sl-slow down.” He moaned. “I-I just came!”

Lance simply chuckled. God, did he love the begging voice he had when he was being over-stimulated like this. “I know.” He said, turning his attention to the other side of Keith’s neck, doing the same kind of assault he had on the right side now on the left.

Keith shuddered, his chin trembling with pleasure as he moaned. “I-I-It’s too- too much; I’m gon- I’m gonna lose my mind…” He moaned.

“Go ahead, I got you.” Lance said, removing his mouth from Keith’s neck as he began to pepper kisses on his chin, cheeks, and forehead. ‘I’m about to cum, okay?”

Keith nodded excitedly, scratching Lance’s back with his fingers as he moaned, then let out a silent scream when Lance came suddenly. Keith shuddered, the feeling of the cum filling him seemed to push him over the edge as Keith came as well, his semen splashing on both of their chests as he clung to Lance as though trying to compose himself.

Lance reached up, gently touching Keith’s face. “You okay, love?” He asked and Keith nodded.

“Y-yeah…” He put his head on Lance’s shoulder. “I-I’m alright, but… um… we should shower…”

“No problem.” Lance smiled. “I’m going to shower with you though, okay?”

Keith blushed strangely dark. “U-um… r-right, okay.” He said and Lance smiled.

“What is it?” He asked with a chuckle.

“N-nothing.” Keith shook his head. “I-It’s nothing; I-I just… I-I need to clean… b-back there…” He said. “I-it can upset my stomach if I don’t…”

Lance felt surprisingly shocked by this. Of course, when he thought about it it made sense. He hugged Keith tightly. “I’m sorry; I didn’t realize. If I would have, I wouldn’t keep coming inside of you.”

Keith tensed. “N-no, it’s okay. H-honestly, it feels really good whenever you do… s-so… the little stomachache is worth it.”

“Really?”

“Y-yeah…” Keith kissed the side of his head. “I-I-I love you, Lance.”

Lance blushed, then chuckled when Keith squeaked.

“W-w-why did you get hard again?!” He said and Lance laughed.

“Because I love you too, Keith.” He said, pressing a gentle kiss on Keith’s lips before pinning Keith back down to the bed.


	75. Update (Spoilers)

Hey guys! Just decided to give you guys a bit of an update while I have the chance.

The contest is still going on right now the deadline is March 14th to submit an image (drawn by you) of your favorite character from this story (whether one of my Original Characters or a Voltron Canon character). I've only gotten one person to enter so far which doesn't make it much of a contest XD So please send in more images and if you guys need time I'm willing to put back the deadline.

Anyways, down to important things. I just watched Voltron Season 5 which was huge! I mean Krolia is freakin' adorable and I love her. Which brings in the perfect chance to also bring her into my story. Which is what is happening HOWEVER I will not be putting her into the story the same way she was introduced into the show. I will also bring in Sam Holt in the same way I am with her. This might be a little frustrating for all of you but this is the best way I could figure out to do it without causing problems for my story in the future.

Now updates are going to be a little longer because my Fiance/Editor is starting her new job (I'm so proud of you babe, you're the best) and won't have as much time to edit. I'm still working on the story almost every day, or at least when my computer loads the damn thing.

I hope you guys are all having a nice time and enjoying this story, I know I really enjoy writing it! I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible!!!


	76. Contest (update)

Alright guys, so seeing how I've only gotten one thing for my contest I'm going to extend it until April 2nd (after the Easter Weekend, which is when I will be out of town camping), so you guys have about two more weeks to put in your entries in for the contest, if you don't know the rules check a previous chapter.

In other news I have a flu bug so I'm only going to post one chapter today, sorry for that. I hope you understand.


	77. The Navi

“It’s ready.” Pidge smiled, looking at Hunk, who nodded, looking at the present for Lance and Keith.

“That’s all fine and good.” Shiro said as he and Matt stood on the other side of the table. “But… what do they do?”

“Well, right now they’re just prototypes. If they work well then we’ll try to make them better and add some final touches.” Hunk explained. “Like food storage and the ability to relay messages.”

“But at the moment all they can do is follow people around and communicate with each other from large distances.” Pidge picked up one of the purple spheres and turned it on, watching it as it began to float effortlessly. “Like, say it was following me, and I got in danger.” She grabbed the other and turned it on before letting it float by Hunk. “Then it would let out an alert sound, telling the other person that there was danger. Then, if it was hard to find the person in danger it will lead you directly to them.” She explained, then smiled when Matt’s face lit up.

“That’s so cool!” He said, looking at the once closest to Hunk. “What do you call them?”

Hunk and Pidge looked at each other before letting out a laugh.

“Navi.” They said together, high-fiving one another.

“Really?” Matt said, suddenly less impressed.

“Yep!” Pidge beamed.

“I’m sorry; what’s a ‘Navi’?” Shiro asked.

“Dude, I’m so disappointed in you. Your Cool Dad points just dropped.” Pidge frowned.

“It’s an annoying fairy from a video game. I mean, it’s really helpful, but it’s super annoying. It follows the main character around and when something happens it says ‘Hey, Listen!’ which, at first is really adorable. But then she says it again, and again, and again.” Matt explained with a sigh.

“Well, it fits.” Pidge shrugged. “We’re going to have one follow Keith and one follow Lance, letting them know that the other is okay.”

“I guess.”

“This is a great idea, you two.” Shiro smiled. “This way Keith can have his alone time and Lance won’t have to worry so much about something bad happening to him.”

“Exactly!” Hunk beamed. “And when the baby is born it can work as a baby monitor, letting Keith and Lance or any of us know that the baby needs something!”

Matt smiled. “Now, who’s going to be brave enough to go wake them up?” He asked and everybody looked in different directions.

 

“Dad!” Keith’s voice echoed as he ran through the house, his small bare feet slapping on the wood floor as he looked around. “Dad, where are you?!”

The house was empty, which wasn’t so unusual. What was unusual was that there was no note, the truck was still outside resting in its’ usual spot, and there was no sign that his father had even been there at all. His important notes were gone; the only pictures that Keith had of all three of them was missing, his father's shoes were no longer by the door, and his cowboy hat was no longer resting on the kitchen table.

“Dad!” He tripped over a loose board, causing him to trip and fall on the hard ground. The tears he had been holding in began streaking down the six-year-old’s face, dripping onto the wood floor. He hated being alone, and now his dad was gone. Where did he go? Was he going to come back? O-of course he would come back; he wouldn’t just leave him forever, would he?

When Keith looked up he saw Lance, holding a bundle against his chest and glaring down at Keith with nothing but pure disgust in his eyes.

“What, you think you can just come crawling back and expect me to forgive you?!” Lance yelled, startling Keith. “You left! You ran away and left us alone! There’s no fixing that! Get out of my house and stay away from my kid!”

Keith’s heart started pounding, his stomach twisting into knots and his breathing picking up. “Lance- wait, Lance, I would never; I-”

“Shut up!” Lance yelled. “Get out! Get out, you monster!”

Keith felt sick instantly, the world around him seeming to grow distant until everything around him was in tunnel vision. Keith brought his hands up to his head, covering his ears as tears dripped down his face.

MONSTER!

The word echoed through his thoughts. Lance… he called him a monster. He had never done it before, so why did he do it now? This had to be a nightmare, and when he woke up Lance would be by his side, loving him again. But until he woke up he was trapped with the word surrounding him, getting louder and louder.

 

“Keith!” The worried call shocked Keith awake as he looked around the room. He was back in the Castle, in Lance’s room.

Lance was above him, his blue eyes full of worry as he held Keith’s face, which brought Keith’s attention to the fact that he was not only crying but having a panic attack as well. Keith’s breathing was fast, his thoughts spinning and his entire head was tingling and felt numb, and his heart was racing so fast that it felt as though it wasn’t beating at all. Lance helped him sit up, touching his shoulders softly.

“There you are. Breathe, babe, breathe.” Lance said. “Deep breaths. What can I do? What do you need?”

“W-w-water.” Keith said. “I-I’m sorry; I’m sorry.”

“No, no. Don’t you be sorry; it’s okay. I’ll go get you a water; do you need anything else?”

Keith looked around, then pointed to a stuffed animal hidden in the corner. Lance nodded, quickly rushing into the corner to grab the stuffed cow, handing it to Keith who quickly pulled it to his chest, panting loudly. Lance then looked at him.

“I’ll be right back, okay? Just keep breathing. I’ll be fast.”

Keith nodded, then watched as Lance ran out of the room.

‘Monster’.

The word still echoed in his thoughts in Lance’s voice, which hurt more than anything. He knew it was a nightmare, that Lance would never call him a monster, but still it hurt. He pulled the stuffed animal up to his face as he cried into the black-and-white spotted fur. It was soft and smelled a lot like Lance, which stopped him from getting worse.  
He looked around slowly. If he could find things to help ground him then he could get out of this attack, but it was getting harder with each passing moment. The two pillows on the bed; both with a blue cover over them. He slept on the right side most of the time, at the edge of the bed so that he could get out of bed if he needed to. The crib in the corner of the room; white with purple interior. It was nice and he couldn’t wait to see a baby inside of it. Lance’s jacket; it was hanging on the back of the door. Keith had tried to wear it once before but it drowned him because it was so big on him.

Keith’s breathing was beginning to slow, and the tears were no longer falling though they still rested in the corners of his eyes.

The bedroom door opened slowly as Lance walked in with a glass of water. He handed it to Keith, who nodded thankfully and took a sip.

“T-thank you…”

“No problem; are you… alright?” He asked. “You… were having a nightmare.”

Keith nodded, “Y-yeah…”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Keith hesitated. “It… started out as a dream about my dad… and the day he vanished… but then you were there… you had our baby… i-it sounded like I had left, just vanished like my dad did. You hated me and told me to leave… t-then… you called me… you called me a monster.” Keith felt tears forming again.

Lance looked hurt. “Keith, I would never call you that; you’re not a monster. Not in the slightest. You are the kindest most caring person I know.” He gently put his hand on Keith’s knee. “I love you.”

Keith hiccuped, putting his head against Lance’s chest. “I-I love you too, Lance. I love you so much.”

Lance slowly and carefully touched Keith’s back, rubbing it gently. “Do you need anything?”

“No… j-just hold me please?” He hiccuped and Lance nodded slowly.

“Of course. Take all the time you need, alright? Deep breaths; I got you.”

 

Lance looked down at Keith with a soft smile. He had calmed down so much that he had fallen asleep again, his face pressed up against Lance’s chest as he snored slightly. He was so adorable when he slept, with his ears slightly down and his lips parted and his hand digging into the fabric of Lance’s shirt. How anybody could think that Keith was a monster? He was beautiful and caring. Sure, he was a little headstrong, but that was one of the things that Lance loved about him. He was his own person even when things seemed to get much more complicated. 

He was a 20-year-old man who in the span of a year found out he was part of the alien race that they had been fighting for months, and then he had also grown large ears, a tail, and got covered in soft purple fur, and then on top of all that he discovered that he was pregnant. That was a lot for anybody to take on, and for Keith and his already complicated life it was a surprise he hadn’t had a complete breakdown yet.

Lance carefully laid Keith down on the bed, pulling the blanket over his surprisingly slender frame before laying next to Keith, holding him closely. Keith snuggled into his chest again, seeming much calmer than he had been before. Just when they got comfortable though, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.” Lance called, still keeping his voice hushed.

Shiro peeked in, smiling slightly. “Hey, everything alright?”

“Yeah, Keith had a bit of a panic attack but we had it under control.”

“That’s good.” Shiro walked over, sitting at the foot of his bed. “Pidge has something for you if you want to go get it.”

Lance thought about it. “I don’t know about leaving him here alone…” He admitted.

“Well, I can stay with him.” Shiro offered.

Lance nodded. “Alright, if you’re sure.” He slowly climbed out of bed, kissing Keith’s head gently. “I’ll be back soon.” He whispered in Keith’s ear before standing up straight.

“They’re in Pidge’s lab.” Shiro smiled. “Are you sure you don’t want to just wake Keith up?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. He’s had a rough time sleeping the past few nights so I might as well let him rest up while he can, you know?”

“Alright. Then I’ll stay by his side until you come back.”

“You’ll let me know if anything happens?”

“Yeah.” Shiro smiled. ‘Now go on, they’re waiting for you.”

 

Lance was more than a little impressed by what Pidge and Hunk had come up with. It was fancy and would help the two of them relax and worry less about each other and the baby in the future. How long had they been planning and working on this thing? Even as just a prototype, this was pretty advanced.

“Alright, there we go. I have this one set to follow Keith around.” Pidge smiled. “It’ll chase his signature and this one will stay with you.” She let the one in her hands fly over to Lance. It floated by his head, watching Pidge as she handed the other to him. “Just turn it on and let it go when it’s close to him, alright?”

“Right.” Lance smiled.

“Speaking of Keith, how is he?” Matt asked.

“Um… having a lot of nightmares lately.” Lance sighed. “I thought he would be able to sleep through a full night but he woke up this morning in the middle of the nightmare and fell into a panic attack almost instantly.”

“Oh yeah…” Pidge frowned. “I tend to forget that he has anxiety.” She crossed her arms. “That’s really hard on him, huh?”

“Yeah, it is, and with his depression it’s only worse.” Hunk sighed. “If he gets too depressed he tends to fall into an anxiety attack or after an anxiety attack he’ll be really depressed.”

“Well, it’s not like there’s much we can do about it.” Lance rubbed the back of his neck. “We left Earth so fast that none of us had time to grab anything from home. Not even medication… that means the medicine for his anxiety and depression as well as my ADHD medication was left behind… We can fabricate some things here on the ship but when it comes to human medicine… it’s hard. I just wish I could help Keith out more, you know? When he has his attacks, I just… I freeze. I don’t know what to do for a good minute as I watch him… but Shiro- when Shiro is around him during these attacks he jumps right in without any hesitation. He knows exactly what to do and when to do it. How to approach Keith without making it worse.”

Matt softly grabbed Lance’s shoulder. “Lance, it takes time to learn how to do stuff like that. Shiro and Keith have known each other most of their lives; he’s learned how to handle it and how to help Keith when he needs help. You’ll have to learn too. Try talking to him when he’s not having an anxiety attack; maybe he’ll be able to give you some kind of idea how to handle the next one a little better so you can be more prepared.”

Lance thought about it for a moment before smiling at Matt. “That’s a good idea; thanks, Matt!” He said, running out of the room with both of the ‘Navi’. “Thanks, guys!”

“No problem!” Pidge laughed after him.


	78. Personal Matters

“I don’t know how I feel about having these things follow me around all the time.” Keith said, his arms crossed. “I mean, it’s a good idea; I just… it feels a little creepy, you know?”

“Relax, Keith.” Lance laughed. “They’re adorable; look at them.” He said, looking at his own Navi. “They’re so little; you won’t even know they’re there! Come on, they’re just prototypes, so… give them a chance? Please? For me?”

Keith blushed slightly. “F-fine. For you.”

“Good!” Lance kissed his head. “Now, go ahead and wander around to test them out, but we have Coran watching you over camera feeds too just in case something happens. Okay?”

“Great, now I feel like a science experiment.” Keith grunted in frustration.

“Well, you’re a beautiful science experiment.” 

“Flattery will get you nowhere.” Keith said, but he was blushing and doing a horrible job of hiding it.

“Of course not. I’m going to go shower; I love you.”

“I love you too, Lance.” Keith said, his voice quiet.

Lance walked out of the room, leaving Keith by himself. The baby hadn’t kicked today, which left him feeling a little lonely. It was his first day of his 9th week and he wanted nothing more than to feel his baby kick. The longer he was pregnant the more afraid he got. He hated being alone… he hated feeling lonely.

Keith’s ears went down, his tail wrapping around his thigh as he rubbed his nose. He might as well do what Lance said and walk around. Maybe it could ward off the loneliness. Maybe he could stumble across somebody and spend some time with them… but he didn’t want to go seeking out company. He didn’t want to be a burden on his friends.  
Keith walked out of the room and went in the direction of the training deck. If he was careful he could get some training in. He knew he would get yelled at if he pushed it too hard so he would do it without a training dummy. At least this way he could keep training and not put himself in ‘unnecessary danger’.

He walked into the training room, pulling out his Galra blade. He spun it slightly before tossing it into the air and catching it. He still struggled with transforming it every time, but he didn’t mind wielding the smaller blade. The Marmora had tried to teach him but none of them really understood it. Most of them were full Galra and had no problem, but he wasn’t. He didn’t know how Galra he actually was. Just enough to activate his blade sometimes and turn himself purple and furry.

‘Just how Galra are you?’ Hunk’s question, though innocent at the time, still bothered him to this day.

“I don’t know…” Keith said quietly to himself, looking down at his feet. “I don’t know anything.”

“Talking to yourself isn’t a good thing, you know. Your friends will begin to suspect you’re crazy.” A familiar voice said, causing Keith to tense up and turn around.

“Kolivan? What are you doing here?” He asked, looking around for any other Blades that could be nearby. Was Ovan with him today? That guy creeped him out.

Kolivan walked over. “Still can’t get the blade to work for you?” He guessed, looking curiously at Navi as it flew around him, scanning him curiously.

“No… it works if I get scared or frustrated.” Keith sighed. “But most of the time no, it doesn’t work.”

Kolivan walked behind Keith, gently taking the hand that was holding his blade and lifted it up. He then used his legs to adjust how Keith was standing with one leg slightly behind the other. “How far along are you now?”

“Nine weeks.” Keith didn’t know how to feel about Kolivan touching him or standing this close but he didn’t pull away. He knew that Kolivan was just trying to help him. He was like his mentor in that way, not ever doing anything to hurt Keith. He didn’t seem to understand ‘personal space’, though.

“Ah, that’s a good ways along then. How are you feeling about it? Do you have any questions?”

“Not… well… I guess I have one. Um… do I… smell still? Like… at all?”

Kolivan smirked. “Only slightly. However, the scent is not strong enough to concern you unless you’re as close as I am now. You’re safe, though; I can easily control my urges.”

“Oh; no, I’m not worried about you.” Keith said, then smiled. “You don’t send up any red flags, though you probably should.” He laughed.

“Do you know the genders yet?”

“Oh, um… there’s only one baby and no… I don’t.” He said.

“Just one? That’s unusual… and concerning. Have there been any complications?” Kolivan let go of his arm and walked in front of Keith, towering easily two feet taller than him. It often surprised him how tall Galra were supposed to be.

“Um… a few. I fainted in the shower a few nights ago. But… I mean, I don’t know my family so there’s not much I can figure out.”

“That’s right… you’re an only child, are you not?”

Keith nodded. “Yeah, as far as I know.”

“I suppose… the only way to know for sure is to talk to your mother or father.”

“Yeah… well, that doesn’t matter. They both vanished when I was a baby, so it doesn’t much matter anymore.” He looked at his blade as it shimmered but didn’t change. “Oh, that reminds me; is there a reason you’re here?” He dropped his stance.

“Yes. I have a mission for you and the other paladins.” He said. “Though I thought that I would bring it up to you before mentioning it to the other team.”

Keith raised an eyebrow. Usually he went straight to Allura with joint missions, and he only briefed Keith one-on-one like this if it was Marmora business. “Okay? What is it?”

“A Marmora Spy, long out of contact, suddenly reappeared on our radar three days ago. While most of the time we would handle this ourselves, this has a personal matter for some of your team.” He crossed his arms. “So I feel as though this would be best handled by you and your team instead of we Blades.”

“What kind of ‘personal matter’?” Keith frowned.

 

“Vellos: a planet turned into a prison by the Galra.” Kolivan explained as they all stood on the Bridge while images appeared on the screen. “Until a few days ago we thought we had no eyes in the prison. In fact the only way to get inside the prison is to be arrested or be a genius scientist from just about any planet.”

“So what changed? Why are we able to get in there now?” Shiro asked.

“Because of her.” A picture of a Galran woman appeared on the screen. She had short hair with dark purple on top and magenta coloring on the bottom with what could only be explained as a thin ponytail running down her back. She looked familiar to Keith but he couldn’t place it, though after a while all Galra began to look alike to him. “Her name is Krolia. She’s one of our spies, and for the past seven years we thought she had been killed in the line of duty. Turns out she’s been holed up in this prison and only managed to contact us three days ago. She sent us access codes, weaknesses in the system, and pictures of the prisoners in the system. Which was when we recognized this image.” He typed on the keyboard for a moment, pulling up another image that made Matt and Pidge gasp.

“Dad!” Pidge frowned, looking at the man who had raised her; though in this picture he looked much older, with longer hair and a beard. “We have to go there!”

“And we will.” Shiro grabbed her shoulder. “What’s the plan?” He asked.

“I will be handing over the schematics to you as well as the easiest course to get you through the asteroid field around the planet and into the prison. However Vellos is ran by a Galra named Thaatok. He’s famous for being merciless and very powerful. He has to be to keep the prison under control, which is why this mission must be done quickly. If Krolia is discovered to be a spy or if Thaatok finds out that she was able to send out a message, she will likely be killed.”

“You heard the man. Let’s put together a plan and get moving. We don’t have a lot of time.” Shiro said, his arms crossed. “Pidge, Matt, take a look at that map and set it up in our Lions; then get suited up. Allura and Coran, wormhole as close as you can to Vellos without being spotted. The rest of us will get suited up and get ready for a fight. In case this mission doesn’t go as stealthily as we all want it to be we need to be ready to defend ourselves.”

Keith walked out of the room, looking at the brunette as Lance took his hand.

“You okay?” Lance asked.

“Yeah. I’m good.” Keith smiled. “Honestly, I’m glad that we finally have a mission. I feel useless just sitting here doing nothing all the time.”

“Well, it sounds this planet is going to be really big.” He said. “So we might have to split up and work different areas… keep the Navi with you, okay? Just in case something bad happens; I want to know that you’re alright.”

“I will, Lance. I don’t want to make you guys worry any more than I already do, so I won’t do anything stupid or reckless if we get separated.” He promised. “Now come on; let’s put our armor on.”

They walked down the hall and into the armor room, stripping out of their clothes and getting dressed into their black spandex, which was the easy part to put on. Though to Keith’s annoyance, keeping his tail tucked around his leg was harder when it was trapped uncomfortably against his skin. Keith then put on his belt, frowning at how snug it was. His stomach was only ever slightly extended but still it made a difference. Keith shook his head, trying to ignore it as he then slipped on his boots, which was once again frustrating feeling his tail trapped in the thigh-plate. The chest piece, which normally wouldn’t have caused any trouble, was harder to put on for many reasons. Like the belt it was really snug but it was also slightly painful against his chest. Had Lance bruised his nipples when they had sex? It wouldn’t be the first time Lance had marked him or made him sore for a few days later. But that didn’t explain why it was so snug.

“You ready?” Lance asked, making Keith frown.

“Oh! Um, just about.” Keith said quickly, pulling on his arm guards and helmet, which fit just as they always had, which only made him question his chest sensitivity more. “Ready.”

“You okay?”

“Yup! I’m just… sore.” He blushed.

“O-oh… maybe four times was too much?” Lance said, keeping his voice down.

“Gee, you think?”

“Yeah.” Lance sighed. “Maybe next time we’ll only go three times.” He winked, making Keith push him slightly.

“L-listen, you. If we’re going to keep having lots of sex like this we’re going to need to find a way to either make or stock up on condoms. Because at this rate you’re going to get me pregnant every time we have sex and this is only something I want to do once.”

“Awww, you’re no fun, Keith.”

“I’m plenty of fun, and if you learn to behave then you’ll get to see the fun.”

“Kinky.” Lance winked, making Keith let out a snort and shake his head.

“Shut up and let’s go.” Keith said as he rolled his eyes.


	79. Reunited

The planet of Vellos was strangely beautiful with the tanzanite coloring and with the Saturn-like rings in a crossed formation around it. Even from space they could tell that all plant life and water sources had been killed and died out from constant use and mining, and that the inner part of the planet had been mined out in order to put in a prison from one side into the other. It was a massive prison that would take a week to walk through on foot without a map.

“The rings are too big and tight for the Black, Yellow, and Blue Lions.” Shiro said over the coms. “We’ll provide cover when we get close. From what Kolivan said there are weapons on the planets that will try to shoot anything that gets too close. We’ll draw the fire while Keith, Matt, and Pidge go in and rescue as many prisoners as they can. Keep close to each other and watch over one another, you three. We won’t be able to get in there and provide back-up if you run into trouble.”

“The prisoners are kept near the core of the planet.” Allura said. “If you fly straight through you should be able to get really close, but you will have to go some distance on foot so watch out for sentries or Thaatok.”

“Sounds like a plan. Come on, Pidge. Let’s move.” Keith said before the Red and Green Lions flew forward, staying close to the outer rings while the bigger Lions flew into the empty areas of the rings, drawing the attention of the weapons on the top of the planet.

Keith and Pidge moved their Lions into one of the openings on the side of the planet, moving fast and low as they pulled in. Pidge was quiet and wasn’t even talking to Matt, who was sitting in the Green Lion with her. It was a tense situation; they all knew it. This was the closest they had ever gotten to their father and Keith was going to do whatever it took to make sure they got to see their dad again.

“This map says Dad is kept in the right area of the prison.” Pidge said. She was obviously going stir-crazy.

Keith frowned at the screen. “Alright, you guys go ahead. I’m going to look for Krolia.” He said.

“But Shiro said-”

“Forget that; we don’t know how much time we have, and if Kolivan was right Krolia could already be dead by now. Focus on finding your dad. I have my Navi with me if I run into trouble.” He promised. “If I run into any trouble you guys will be the first ones to know.”

It was quiet for a minute. “Alright, but you better be careful.” Matt said. “Because if you’re not the others will kill us for letting you go in another direction.”

“I’ll be fine.” Keith said, the two Lions splitting off in different directions when a fork appeared in the path.

Red flew for another three minutes before she came to a dead end with a smaller door at the bottom. Keith glared at it, landing his Lion carefully on the ground.

-Be careful, Keith.- Red said with a soft growl. -I will rip apart any wall to get to you if I have to.-

“Thanks, Red. But I’ll be fine.” Keith smiled, patting the dashboard as he got out of his seat and made his way out of her. Keith then ran to the door, pulling out his bayard as he cautiously approached it. There was a touch pad for a Galra hand, which he was easily able to put his hand against to open the door.

It scanned it for a moment before the door opened slowly, the air locks decompressing with a hiss. Keith sucked in a breath, peeking around the corner with a frown, making sure the passage was clear before he rushed through. He followed the map, which he had pulled up on his wrist computer. He would follow it to the main part of the prison and go from there. He just hoped that he would make it in time.

 

Matt plunged the top of his spear into the head of a sentry that had spotted them and let out a sigh. He looked at Pidge, who was tense as they jogged down the hallway as quietly as they could. The closer they got to their father’s cell the more uneasy Pidge became. She was so stressed by everything that was going on around them.

They were so close to finding their father; it was only a matter of time before they got to hold him again, and while Matt knew it had been hard on him to be away from his dad he couldn’t imagine how Pidge- how Katie- was feeling about the entire situation. Matt, Shiro, and their father had been missing for almost a year exactly when they found the Blue Lion and went into space. In that time Katie had thought the worst. Their mother thought the worst. It was hard to ignore that.

Katie had been so strong, but now that they were close to getting their father back it was clear how close to breaking down she was.

Pidge looked around and pointed at one of the cells against a wall. “That one.”

Matt nodded, jogging after Pidge as she ran to the door and began typing in codes on the pad next to it. She was tense, her shoulders trembling as she typed in the code. The airlocks released and the door slowly began to open, allowing the light from the halls to fill the cell.

At first the cell appeared empty, which caused Pidge to hiccup and nearly begin to cry in dismay but that was when a figure stepped out of the corners, looking over them. The man in front of them looked at them with wide golden-colored eyes, his gray hair long and messy, a beard and mustache taking over his face, and lack of sleep and long term stress obvious on his face in the form of bags under his eyes.

“Dad!” Pidge said, pulling off her helmet and rushing into their father’s arms.

“Katie? M-Matt?!” He hugged Pidge tightly, before holding his arm out for his son who quickly ran over, hugging both his sister and his father tightly in his arms. He wouldn’t let either of them go ever again. He wasn’t going to let them get hurt as long as he was around. He would protect them at all costs.

“I found you.” Pidge hiccuped. “I finally found you…”

 

Keith rounded a corner, sliding slightly when he came face-to-face with a large Galra man. He was easily as tall as Sendak, though unlike Sendak this man had very small ears on the top of his head with a bottom jaw that was bigger than the top, giving him a Bulldog-like snarl. His eyes reminded Keith of a bush baby’s from Earth, but these eyes seemed to scan every detail of Keith and felt as though they were looking deep down into his soul.

His eyes narrowed as he let out a growl, hitting a button on his suit. The moment the button was pressed alarms began ringing out above them as red lights flashed. Thaatok drew a large weapon much like a scythe from his back and ran at Keith.

Keith instinctually jumped backwards, feeling strangely off-balance without his tail, but he ignored it and pulled out his bayard,the sword forming just in time to block Thaatok’s first attack, which was a downward strike. Keith growled, glaring at him as he braced one hand on the side of the blade to keep the force behind his weapon.

He wasn’t only massive for show; he was extremely powerful and this attack only seemed to further prove it, though his size also made him slow. If Keith could use that to his advantage…

Keith slid to the side, taking his sword with him and causing Thaatok to fall forwards, stumbling over his feet. Keith took this new chance to run at Thaatok, swinging his sword at his back with a yell. Keith was surprised to find that when his sword made contact with his back, the sword bounced with a CLINK as though it had bounced off of another piece of metal. Keith stumbled slightly as his arm throbbed from the rebound.

Thaatok chuckled, turning towards him, a large smile on his ugly mug. “Nice try, child.”

Keith growled. Well, there went that plan.

 

When the alarms began to go off Pidge knew that Keith was in trouble. They had only just started letting out the other prisoners though, and there was no way she was going to just abandon her dad again to take everybody to the Green Lion, who likely wouldn’t even open for them. There was only one choice.

“Matt.” She looked at him. “Keith needs help. Go, I got this.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded. “I’m sure. Now go; it’ll take you a while to get there and he might not have that long.”

“Right. I’m on it.” Matt nodded, grabbing his staff and running in the direction that Keith would likely have gone. If he ran he could make it there within ten minutes, as long as he didn’t run into any trouble.

“Guys, the alarms are going off in here.” Pidge said over the coms but all she got back in reply was static. The rings were causing more and more problems by the second. “Right. No back-up. Wonderful.”

 

Keith let out a cry of pain as Thaatok grabbed his chest plate and threw him against the wall. The suit took most of the damage but he could still feel a rib crack as he fell onto his side on the ground. Keith grunted, trying to get up. His nose was bleeding, his chest hurt, and he was beginning to feel sick. Thaatok was slow but one punch had nearly caused Keith to black out, which of course was causing ‘Navi’ to lose its’ shit, flying close to Keith and letting out high-pitched sounds that only bothered Keith. Thaatok seemed unable to even hear it.

Keith managed to get to his hands and knees, looking at the Galra as he towered above him, raising his scythe. Keith’s bayard had been dropped in the battle and his only weapon was the Marmora blade that he held tightly in his fist, but it still refused to transform for him. Keith tightly closed his eyes, bracing for pain, but instead there was only the sound of gunshots followed by Thaatok’s pained screams.

Keith looked up at Thaatok, who was stumbling away from Keith while purple bullets crashed against the soft flesh of his sides and stomach. Keith looked over at the attacker and blinked in surprise. Krolia was standing there, anger and determination on her face. Her fur was dirty and she had a nick in her ear, likely from an earlier battle with Thaatok, but that didn’t stop her now.

This gave Keith the opportunity he needed to make a break for his bayard. He scrambled to his feet, running to the red weapon that laid on the ground a few feet away. He scooped it up, once again activating his sword and turning around. This time he knew where to hit, and he couldn’t afford to hesitate. Keith ran at Thaatok again, lunging with his sword forward instead of his typical swing as he plunged the sword into the side of Thaatok’s rib cage.

Thaatok made a disturbing gurgling sound as Keith pulled the sword out of his chest and let it turn back into his normal bayard. Thaatok put his hand on his wound, letting out a wet cough as he spit blood onto the floor by his feet. Keith looked away, not wanting to see any more as the Galra man fell face down onto the ground.

“You alright, kid?” Krolia asked, and Keith took off his helmet so he could wipe the blood off his chin.

“Yeah… I’m fine, thanks.”

Krolia’s eyes were wide as she looked at him, then cleared her throat when a shout could be heard.

“Keith!”

“Matt!” Keith called back as Pidge’s brother rounded the corner and ran over.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine; we should get out of here. Did you guys find your dad?”

Matt’s smile held the answer. “He’s with Katie. Come on, I’ll catch a ride with you and… Krolia, right?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “However, we should move quickly.”

“Why?”

“Because I rigged the main platform to explode in twenty minutes.” She stated simply.

“What?!” Matt and Keith yelled.

 

To say their escape was a close call would be an understatement, considering that the flames from the explosions chased the Red and Green Lions out of the core of the planet and into space. Once they were safe and on their way to the Castle Keith was able to take his first real breath.

“So are we going to talk about the elephant in the room?” Matt asked.

“What do you mean?” Keith looked over at Krolia and Matt.

“What do I- Keith. You two look EXACTLY the same. Well, your faces do, and your eyes. Granted, you have a tail and she doesn’t but my point is… you guys look a lot alike.”

Keith looked at Krolia for a moment. Now that Matt mentioned it they did look similar; plus there was the weird look that Krolia had given him when she first saw his face. What was that about?

“Kolivan sent you, didn’t he?” Krolia asked.

Keith nodded slowly.

“Sneaky little bastard.” She sighed.

“And there’s that! Out of ALL the aliens we’ve met you sound the most human out of everybody! You use terms we’ve only heard on Earth!” Matt pointed out.

She glared at Matt, who shrunk down in his seat as he cleared his throat.

“I was hoping to avoid this… meeting in this way, anyway. Granted I never expected you to come all this way from Earth.” She admitted.

Keith’s ears went down as she walked over and smiled at him.

“Though I also never expected you to look like this when I saw you next, either.” She reached to touch his face as Keith moved back cautiously.

“Do… I know you?”

Her eyes seemed sad. “You were just a baby… but a mother never forgets.”

Keith seemed to struggle processing this for a while before it dawned on him. “Wait… you’re… my-”


	80. And The Winner Is....

Hey everybody! I'm back and happy to announce the winner of the contest!

Before that though, because I'm a little shit and love to keep you all waiting a short little update about my life and the upcoming chapters. I just returned from a long weekend camping with my fiance and my family. Aside from the fact that there was a Mountain Lion outside of my trailer and Coyotes around the camp it was pretty uneventful. Did a little hiking, played with my cousins and their babies (I freakin' love babies), and bonded with my parents and extended family a bit more. In this time however I didn't get any writing done over the weekend, which sucks considering that I'm suck on the chapter I'm working on.

I also recently went into the doctor where they discovered that not only do I have a deformity in my 11th and 12th vertebrae in my back but also that a pocket of air has formed between the two of them. They're going to be running tests on it to find out what they can do about it. So I've been doing a lot of working out (very light things) to help my back work through the pain. So until then I'll do my best to write but sitting down hurts if I do it too long. When I am sitting down doing whatever I'm doing I'm normally writing or playing games. If you want to follow me/join me you can!

I often play on Minecraft P.C. on Hypixel, Wynncraft (though I struggle with this more than half the time so I'm not on this one as often) and recently Vox Populi Diamond and Vox Populi Emerald under the name SandyMicrobe!

On Roblox the name is also SandyMicrobe! I play Pokemon Brick Bronze, RoCitizens, and Wolves Life 3.

I also freakin' love Sims 4 so if you have any builds/characters to share with me my name is MaxHeartnet!

 

Alright, now for what you have all been waiting for! The results!

I loved every single piece of art that was sent into me so thank you all so much for that! They were beautiful and this was actually really hard to choose my favorite. Saying that though I had to choose one and I chose this one:

https://cup-of-space-goo.tumblr.com/post/172084667176/look-at-me-making-my-own-art-instead-of-just

So congrats to Bondolas for winning my first ever contest! I will be contacting them in private to go over what they won but for the rest of you it's going to be a secret until it happens. So congrats yet again! Just because this is over though doesn't mean you have to stop sending me art. If you have art you guys are free to keep sending it in. I absolutely love seeing it and it inspires me more and more with every picture that you guys send in!

 

I'll try to post the next chapter as soon as I can but until then please keep being calm and patient with me, I'm doing my best.


	81. Still Alive! (Authors Note)

Hey guys! I'm sorry this chapter is taking so goddamn long to get out, I really didn't like the way it was written so I completely started over the chapter I had done in hopes to kick the train of thought back onto its track and so far it has worked! I'm hoping to have the next chapter out sometime this week but don't hold me to that one, because as you guys can tell I am the Queen of Procrastination.

In other words the winner to the contest was announced on the previous chapter (I think) and their character will be in the story in just a few more chapters so look out for that one! ;)

If you have art for this story that you would like to share you're still free to do so, I love to see it but there probably won't be another contest, sorry about that. I also don't think there will be a second book to this and if there is it will only be five or six chapters just to wrap a few things up and let everybody know that they had a happily ever after. Which includes Zayne, Kai, and his husband.

Any who I just thought I would give a small update before I go back to working on the next chapter. I'll let you know if my train of thought crashes again and I get stuck but hopefully that won't happen... for a while at least.


	82. Past Love

To Keith, the word ‘Mother’ or even ‘Mom’ hadn’t been words that Keith had used often, and until now he hadn’t had a face in his mind when he said it. So now as he sat on the couch, hugging a pillow with a blanket over his head and shoulders, he tried to make the two mesh. He held the pillow against his chest, hiding the bottom half of his face in the fabric and trying to wrap his head around everything he had been told.

Everything was hitting him all at once. Hell, yesterday he was still just an orphan who thought that his mother had died when he was born. Now all of a sudden she was there in front of him as a prisoner that they had been in charge of rescuing. None of this made any sense, and of course now that Krolia was here in the ship and Kolivan was nowhere to be seen he had no idea. Keith needed answers, but he didn’t even know what kinds of questions to ask.

The upside of the situation was the fact that the baby was more active than ever, which at least pushed down the worry he had about what the effects Thaatok could have had on them. It was alive, at least, and any other effects of the battle wouldn’t be seen until after the baby was born. It was scary, but at least now Keith was beginning to understand why people kept him under wraps all the time and constantly worried about him. If he had been hit hard enough… he and the baby could have died. If the baby died… Keith wouldn’t be able to take it emotionally. It would just be too much to handle, not to mention how Lance would react to losing the baby. What would Lance do if he lost both of them? Would he be okay?

Keith shook his head and pulled the pillow tighter against him. He was fine. The baby was fine. Now he needed to focus on the things happening right now. Like the timing of all of these things going on around him. It was all too strange to just happen at the same time; the war ending with Zarkon, his pregnancy, and now his mother suddenly showed up? There was no way these were a coincidence. Something else was going on, something bigger. He just couldn’t think of what it could possibly be, at least not yet. All he could think of was the fact that he didn’t know what to say to Krolia, the woman claiming to be his mother. What should he say to her? What could he say? He didn’t even remember the stories his father had told him about his mother.

All he remembered was his knife. The blade his father had given to him that ended up being from an alien planet given to his father by his mother. It was scary how all of this was coming together and how fast everything was happening.

“Keith?” Hunk walked over, smiling gently when he saw Keith jump. Hunk was holding a plate with two milkshakes on it. “Hey, are you doing okay?”

“Yeah.” Keith smiled, but between the confusion on his face and the hormones of his pregnancy, tears began to form in the corners of his eyes. “... I don’t know…”

Hunk smiled gently, then sat down next to him. He handed a milkshake to Keith. “That’s for you, and… so is this.” He smiled softly as he gave him a gentle hug.

Keith tightly gripped the cup. He was so confused with so many emotions and questions running through his head; he felt like he was spinning. He put his head on Hunk’s chest, his ears and tail quivering as he hiccuped. Tears streamed down his face. “I have so many questions. H-Hunk, what do I do? I feel like everything is building up on my shoulders and every time I get rid of one thing three more problems build up on top of it.”

Hunk rubbed Keith’s back. “If you have questions the only thing you can do is ask them, and in that other room is probably the only person in the entire universe that will be able to answer them. Just try your best. You don’t have to ask all your questions right now, but you’ll have plenty of time to ask them in the future. But the important thing is that you at least talk to her.”

Keith nodded with a frown. “Okay… thank you, Hunk… but can you stay with me for a few minutes? I-I just don’t want to be alone right now.”

“Of course.” Hunk smiled. “How are you feeling? Physically, I mean? Lance’s Navi was going crazy for a while.”

Keith sighed slightly before leaning back and taking a sip of his milkshake. “I got my ass kicked, but… I’m alright now. Just a few bruises.”

“What about the baby? Are they okay?”

Keith nodded. “They’re moving around like crazy.” He said, smiling when he saw the curious look on Hunk’s face as he looked down at his stomach with wide eyes. “Do… you want to feel?”

Hunk beamed happily. “Can I?”

Keith nodded, moving the pillow away from his chest and stomach before he then leaned back cautiously. This was always awkward for many reasons, but it didn’t help that Keith wasn’t a big fan of being touched in the first place. Hunk carefully reached forward and put his hand on Keith’s stomach, his eyes widening as the baby kicked and moved under the slight weight of the outside touch.

“They’re strong.” Hunk pointed out and Keith smiled.

“If you say so. They’re tiny and really obnoxious. But… it’s more obnoxious when they don’t move for a long time and worry me. Hell, half the day they didn’t move and now they won’t hold still.” Keith took another sip of the drink. He wasn’t a big fan of milk or sweets in general, but since the beginning of his pregnancy one of the main things he wanted was sweets. “It’s been a crazy first day of week nine.” He laughed.

“Oh, that’s right; I keep forgetting you’re already that far along.” Hunk said with a soft smile. “Time sure does fly when you’re in space.”

“If you say so; it feels more like time has stopped since I got pregnant.” Keith sighed. “I just… I don’t know; sometimes I just want this baby out of me but other times… I enjoy it and know that it’s easier now than it will be once it is out of me.”

“Well… enjoy it when you can, and whenever you’re having a hard time feel free to talk to me.” He smiled. “Or anybody, really. It doesn’t have to be me; we’re all here for you! You know, one big happy family.”

“Thanks, Hunk. Talking to anybody helps but… I hate bothering people.”

“You’re not bothering anybody, Keith.” Hunk said, leaning back in his seat. “You’re our friend and you should feel comfortable opening up to each and every one of us. Nobody here will judge you, or be upset with you, or will be bothered by what you have to say. You’re a good person and we all love you.”

Keith blushed slightly. “Thanks, Hunk.” He said shyly.

 

Keith walked into the pod room where Krolia was standing, looking curiously at the pods. She had been healed by them a while ago, which gave them the perfect chance for Keith to relax and think about things, but now that she was out of the pod it was time for them to talk. She looked at Keith and smiled.

“You look nice in normal clothing.” She stated, and Keith blushed slightly and tugged his red jacket slightly tighter around him.

“T-thanks.” Keith shrugged. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better.” She nodded. “The healing pod worked perfectly.”

The two stood awkwardly for a long moment before Krolia sighed. “I’m sure you have questions.”

“That’s an understatement.” Keith whined slightly, rubbing his arm. 

It was hard not to make eye contact with her. Now that he knew it was hard to ignore how similar the two of them looked. Between the face shape, their fur coloring, their eye color and their eye shape, she looked more like him than any other Galra they had met before. Hell, if he could remember more about his dad he could probably say that he looked more like her than he did his father.

“Well then.. What do you want to know?”

“Um… how about why you left me and my dad? That seems like as good of place as any.” Keith said, crossing his arms.

Krolia looked slightly hurt by the aggression but also seemed to understand why he said what he did. “Very well… um, have a seat.” 

The two of them sat on the floor, cross-legged in front of one another. Keith wrapped his tail around himself protectively. He wouldn’t mention his pregnancy until after he learned more of their background, though if she was anything like Kolivan she already knew.

“Well… your father and I met about half a year before you were born.” She said. “I had just finished taking out a Galra ship from the inside. I had managed to find an escape pod.”

 

-21 Years Ago-

 

The sounds of the alarms ringing out above her caused panic to rush through Krolia’s veins as she looked for some way to get out of the ship. Her cover had been blown and while she had managed to stop the crew from letting out a distress signal she was now on a ship that was on a collision course with the dark side of a moon, and at the speed they were going the entire ship would be destroyed on contact. Her mission now was to escape and make her way back to the Blade of Marmora hideout and let them know the situation that was going on in this area of the universe.

They had taken scans of the blue, green, and brown planet and discovered that it was fully populated. They had managed to intercept some of the communications from the planet and learned that it was called ‘Earth’ and that the people on the planet called themselves ‘Humans’. As far as they could tell the humans were naive and unaware of life on other planets, and while she didn’t want to be the reason that they were suddenly introduced to the concept the only chance she had to survive the crash and figure out how to get all the way back to the Marmora involved her taking refuge on the planet until she was safe.

Krolia slid slightly as she turned around the corner, spotting an escape pod in the distance. The ship was shaking, the smell of smoke and fuel was suffocating, and with the ship crumbling under her feet she didn’t hesitate jumping into the ship and slamming her entire fist on the ‘eject’ button, which in a matter of seconds shot her out of the back of the ship. The force of the ejection was enough force to shoot her past the moon and in the direction of the blue planet.

Krolia stumbled her way to a seat, strapping herself into the front seat before gripping the arm rest tightly. The escape pod shook and trembled, loud clanks echoing through the ship as some of the panels on the outside of the ship began to crumble and fall off. The atmosphere was thick and was very aggressive against the escape pod as she fell towards the planet.

The closer she got to the ground the more orange and yellow the ground became, and soon she discovered that the area of the planet she was about to land on was all hard rock and sand. This crash was going to be very bad.

 

The next few memories she had came as a blur. She didn’t remember the crash; her first memory was of her being trapped in her seatbelt. Then there was darkness and another blurry memory of the seatbelt being cut away and her being pulled out of her seat. More darkness was quickly followed by somebody talking to her and then nothing more until she woke up fully.

She was in incredible pain; her head throbbing, her chest aching, and her leg screaming in agony. She blinked away the veil that covered her vision and began to look around the room. It was pretty run down, and judging by the amount of things thrown around the person who had been living there hadn’t been worried about guests or anything like that. They hadn’t bothered keeping the place clean, at least.

The door at the other end of the room opened and Krolia tried to sit up, reaching for her blade which was typically on her hip. She began to panic slightly when she discovered it wasn’t there. A ‘human’ walked in, looking at her with a smile.

Humans were strange-looking. Not being covered in fur or scales meant they had nothing to protect their skin from the element except for clothing. It was a poor evolutionary trait, if you asked her. He had tan coloring with black hair, and grey eyes that like hers seemed to have a hint of purple to them. He had large eyebrows, a square chin, and a broad and muscular body.

“Hey, y’re finally awake.” He walked over to the bed, holding a bowl with water in it. He had a strong accent that was strangely attractive. Though that thought could have been easily blamed on her possible concussion.

Krolia let out a groan as he ran a cold cloth across her forehead. “Where is my knife?”

“I was afraid ya would lash out when ya woke up so I put it in that drawer ov’r there.” He said, pointing to a dresser in the corner of the room. “What’s y’ur name?”

“Krolia…” She said after a long moment.

“Krolia? Like the cray’n?”

“What is a ‘cray’n’?”

The man chuckled. “Don’t matter. My name’s Austin. It’s nice ta meet ya, Krolia. Where ya from? Not ‘round here, I bet; I never met nobody as beautiful as you ‘til now.”

Krolia frowned slightly. “Yeah, not from here. Far, far from here, in fact, and I need to get back as soon as I can. I have people waiting for me.” She tried to sit up and he grabbed her shoulder and pushed her back down on the bed, making her fight down the instinct to flip him to the floor and run.

“Not ‘til you’re done healin’. Ya broke y’ur leg in the crash. Once y’re healed ya and I will figure out a way ta get ya out of here.” He smiled.

Krolia hated the fact that he was making her lay down, but she also knew that running wasn’t much of an option at this point. Her leg was in a big chunk of a hard substance; it would slow her down. “Where is here?” She asked.

“Arizona.” He smiled, putting the cloth back into the bowl before he walked to the foot of the bed and began examining her left leg, which was heavily bandaged. “Basically the middle of nowhere. But ya don’t got nothin’ ta worry about out here; there ain’t a lot of people ‘round here who’ll come askin’ questions. Hell, ya were lucky I was even ‘round here. If I hadn’t been monitoring the recent earthquakes in the area ya probably woulda died.”

“Well then, I suppose I should thank you…”

“Thank me? Nah, ya don’t gotta do that. It’s nice havin’ company even if it’s just for a few days. Gets lonely bein’ out here all by myself.”

“Then… why are you out here?”

“Well…” He smiled. “I think that’s another story for a different day. For now ya should rest; I’ll bring ya dinner in a little while.”

 

Two days later Krolia was able to walk around on her own with the help of a homemade crutch that Austin had made her. It was nice that she didn’t have to lay in that bed anymore, but now that she was able to walk around and see the damage that had been done to her ship she was losing hope that she would be able to head back into space soon. Austin had managed to put out the fire that had developed in the frame but with all the pieces of the ship that had broken off on entry, finding replacements would be next to impossible, and even making them herself would take a few months.

“I gathered all that I could find around the crash.” Austin said. “Though I’m considerin’ going back with the metal detector and seein’ if I can find smaller pieces.” He rubbed the back of his head while Krolia limped around the ship.

“Thank you…” She sighed. “But we won’t know what’s missing until we clean this up and start putting it back together, which means that we should probably start to take the more damaged areas apart.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll get my toolbox.” He grinned, then jogged into the house, making Krolia smile.

At least she got stuck on a planet with somebody who was actually willing to help her.

 

It wasn’t until almost a week after the crash that Krolia realized how well Austin was taking all of this. A strange alien crashed on his planet near enough to catch his attention and he not only saved her, but was now helping her put together her escape pod back together. But he was acting like it was just another day in the desert.

“Austin?” She asked as she laid under the escape pod, replacing one of the damaged pipes.

“Yup?” Austin was working at the top of the ship, measuring panels they would need in order to replace the ones that had been lost in the crash. “Somethin’ wrong?”

“No. Well, I mean… how are you okay with all of this? Just a few days ago your species weren’t even aware of life on other planets, correct?”

“Well… yeah. But there are signs all over the planet that we’ve been visited by alien races before. Reports in history, drawin’s on cave walls, and other things that can’t be explained unless humans had the help of aliens in the past.”

That made sense to Krolia. ‘Earth’ had been heard a few times throughout space, but she had always thought they were rumors spread by a crazy man in a Space Mall. Though seeing it for herself only made many of the rumors seem like fact. Even though they were in the desert it was just as beautiful as some of the stories she had heard, and thankfully she hadn’t seen anything suggesting the horror stories about Earth were true. Stories about being tied to a table, cut open, and experimented on; they just simply didn’t make sense when she was having such an enjoyable time here. 

“Austin?”

“Yup?”

“Do you have a mate?” She asked and there was a loud bang from outside, causing her to roll out from under the ship and look up at him.

“A-a mate?”

“Yes.”

“N-no… why?” He asked, his face red.

“I would just feel bad if I was keeping you away from a loved one or somebody who cared about you.”

“Well…” He sighed slightly. “I have an older brother and a nephew; he’s about four now.” Austin sat up, cleaning oil off his hands. “They live up in Nevada, which ain’t that far but I don’t got a good relationship with my brother.”

“I see…”

“What about ya? Do ya got a family waitin’ for ya?”

“Biologically speaking, no, but… I have people that I consider my family. Though for people like me it’s hard to find a mate.”

“People like you?”

“Yeah. You know, a Beta.”

“Beta? Like a wolf?”

“A wolf?”

“Um, never mind.” He laughed. “Explain the Beta thing for me.”

She nodded, sitting up and rubbing the bandages on her leg. They itched. She wasn’t sure if it was from the sand or because it was healing, but it itched all the same. “Well… the species I come from, as well as many others, have Alpha, Beta, and Omega rankings. The Alphas are the ‘top’ of the group; they can choose their mates, which are typically Omegas or Betas. They don’t often choose other Alphas because getting too many in a single space can be dangerous, but I’ve heard stories of Alphas being abusive in general, especially to their partners if they fail to get pregnant. Alphas can only cause pregnancy, which is why they go after Betas and Omegas. Betas, like myself, are in the middle. They can either get pregnant or get others pregnant, though we often don’t feel that urge unless we fall in love. But there are more Betas than any others. Then there are the Omegas. There can be multiple Omegas to a single Alpha, and depending on the Omega and Alpha there can be multiple Alphas to a single Omega. Omegas often fall into ‘heat’ because they can only carry young. Their body simply feels the need for it and will panic if they aren’t pregnant or taking care of a child.” She explained.

“And y’re a Beta?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Well… Here we don’t have Alphas or Omegas, at least not in our dominant species. We have Dominants and Submissives. Anybody could be anything they want; just depends where they want to be.”

“Where do you like to be?” She asked, getting up slowly.

“I’ve always been a dominant.” He smiled, helping her to her feet.

“Well… then perhaps you would allow me to be your submissive? As… payment for your assistance?”

 

Two weeks later the ship was looking much better, and except for the pieces that would be hard to find replacements for things were going pretty smoothly. At least until Krolia discovered something that shook all her plans right off course. Krolia sat in the bedroom, holding her stomach with a sigh.

She had never been pregnant before, but she knew the signs. Between being sick to her stomach, exhausted, and moody all the time it wasn’t hard to figure it all out. She was pregnant. Of course she had gotten pregnant; what did she expect? With her luck, it was bound to happen eventually.

How would Austin react? Would he get angry? Would he refuse to help her? Would he hate her now?

“Krolia, ya okay?” Austin asked, walking into the room and handing her a cup of water. “Ya’ve been throwin’ up a lot lately.”

“Yeah… um… I have a strange question. If… I mean, what would I have to do to make you hate me?”

Austin frowned. “Are ya tryin’ ta make me hate ya?”

“N-no, I just… I would like to avoid that as much as possible.”

Austin smiled gently, patting her back. “The only thing that could make me hate ya is if ya gave up. Gave up on tryin’ ta get home, gave up on doin’ what ya want, and givin’ up on whatever ya care about.”

Krolia nodded slowly, looking down at her feet. “So… if… I told you I was pregnant?”

“I would be worried but happy. I mean, I really like kids; they’re so cute and I- wait.” He looked at her. “Y’re-”

Krolia nodded again.

“That’s great!” He said happily, taking her arms gently in his hands.

“Really?”

“Yes, really! That’s great, but…” His smile faded. “What will ya do?”

“What would you like me to do?”

Austin thought for a moment. “Well… I think we should still get y’ur ship ready and… when the time comes maybe I can go with ya. The baby, ya, and I on an adventure across space. Sounds romantic, don’t it?” He smiled.

Krolia had to admit that was a beautiful idea, but she couldn’t bring up the fact that it would be too dangerous. She was a spy doing her best to put a stop to the war, and even when she did have the baby she would likely have to leave them here on Earth and come back for them once the war was over. She couldn’t stand the thought of putting her family in danger.

“Yeah… it does a little bit.”

Austin sat down, gently taking her hand. “So tell me about what I should be ready for with y’ur pregnancy so I know how ta prepare.” His eyes were big and full of excitement.

That was one of the things Krolia liked about Austin. He listened to whatever she said and didn’t get hostile or judge her. He listened to her stories about the war and how it started, as well as the rebellion she was a part of and what caused the crash.

Krolia smiled and began to explain everything to him. How she would be pregnant for 20 weeks before having the babies, and that the chances of there being only one was very slim. He never took his eyes off of her, asking questions when he needed to and listening intently to the answers.

 

“It’s too soon…” Krolia whined as she laid on the bed, holding her stomach. She was only 14 weeks along in her pregnancy and already she was in labor. Her stomach clenched with contractions as the baby tried to force its way out of her. Austin stood by her side, holding her hand and playing with her hair. “A-Austin, what are we going to do? I-it’s too soon.”

“Breathe, Krolia.” He said, running his hand over her forehead. “I’m here; we’ll get through this together. All ya have ta do is breathe.”

Austin had spent the last 14 weeks reading pregnancy books when he wasn’t working on the ship or making things for the baby. Now, though, all his knowledge would be put to the ultimate test - six weeks early.

“I’m goin ta get some stuff. Just breathe deep; I’ll be five minutes.” He promised, kissing her head before rushing into the next room.

Her breath hitched in her chest as she panted harshly, arching her back as she dug her nails into the sheets. She had never felt anything this painful. Even all her training, her broken bones, and being tortured couldn’t compare to the pain of labor. The pain made time seem to drag on, and what was probably only five minutes felt like twenty hours.

Austin rushed back in, carrying a large bowl of warm water with a handful of towels tucked under his arm. He put the bowl of water on the floor next to the bed before laying one of the towels under her hips. “I have ta spread y’ur legs, okay? We need ta start pushin’.”

Krolia nodded, lifting up her legs with a pained whimper as she panted harshly. Austin stood at the foot of the bed, slowly sliding two fingers into her before frowning.

“Yeah, it’s time to push. Okay, so take a deep breath. Then push for five seconds, then take a ten second break.” Austin said and Krolia nodded. “One, two, three. PUSH.”

Krolia did as she was told, sitting up from the force that she was pushing with tears streaming down her face, sweat soaking her hair.

“One, two, three, four, five. Stop.”

This continued for almost half an hour; half an hour of screaming and pushing before Krolia gave birth to a baby boy. He was pale purple with stripes on his face much like her own and purple eyes. He was much smaller than any baby she had seen before and was easy to cradle in just her two hands. He was screaming loudly, kicking and wriggling against the towel they had wrapped him in.

“He’s beautiful.” Austin said, sitting next to Krolia as he ran his finger across his son’s hand. “What do ya want ta name him?”

Krolia thought for a moment, but after not being able to come up with anything she chuckled. “How about you choose?” She asked, rubbing her hand by the baby’s slightly pointed ears.

“Oh babe, ya know I'm terrible with names…”

“Just shut up and pick a name.” Krolia chuckled.

“Okay… um… how about… Keith?”

“Keith?” It was an unusual name, but so were most names she had heard on Earth. Though the name was also slightly endearing. “It’s perfect.” She bent over slightly, kissing Austin’s head. “I love you.”

“I love ya too; both of ya.” He hugged her tightly, while looking at his baby boy with joy in his eyes.

 

Two months later Keith completely lost his purple coloring and had the same color skin tone as his father, which was a bit upsetting for Krolia but deep down she didn’t mind. When she went back to space she wouldn’t be able to bring Keith with her; she couldn’t take a baby into the front lines. He and her father would have to live here on Earth, and if he looked anything like her it would only cause him problems in the future. Though the idea of leaving her son and love behind was just as heartbreaking.

Keith was laying in his crib, sucking loudly on his fist. He was beautiful and leaving him would be painful as hell. In just a week’s time her ship would be ready to take off and she would have to say goodbye. Austin knew and understood; she also knew that someday she would be back for them but not for a while. Not until it was safe for them to live happily ever after and not worry about a war anymore. However long that took.

She had stayed on Earth too long; the Blade of Marmora were depending on her to bring back answers and use her skills to find out more information on the enemy and she simply couldn’t do that from here. Plus, if she didn’t go back who knew how fast Zarkon and the Galra army would find their way to Earth again. If they did that it would be destroyed and her family would be killed. She couldn’t let that happen.

Krolia hesitated as she pulled out her knife, looking at it. She would come back as soon as she could, but if he had to grow up without her she would at least leave him a way to find her in the future. Krolia smiled when Austin walked over and put his hand on her shoulder.

“Krolia? Ya okay?” He asked and Krolia nodded, handing the knife to Austin.

“When he’s old enough… give him this knife and tell him it’s from his mother. Please. A-and don’t let him forget about me.” She said and Austin smiled slightly.  
Austin touched the side of her face, running his thumb under it. “Of course I won’t let him forget ya, but how could he? Somebody as beautiful as ya is hard ta forget. Besides, how could I not tell him about the beautiful woman fightin’ ta save the entire universe from a criminal army trying ta take over?”

Krolia smiled with a slight blush dusting her face. “Yeah, how could you not?” She laughed. “But… this is hard. I’ve always wanted a family, and now that I have one…” She sighed.   
"Is it selfish for me to not want to let you guys go?”

Austin frowned. “No, it’s not selfish. It’s natural, but ya have more important things ta do. Besides, if ya hurry up and end this war ya can come back home ta us.”

Krolia smiled, gently kissing him. “I miss you already.”

 

-Present day-

 

“So a week later I left Earth and never had the chance to come back.” Krolia explained and Keith unconsciously began to play with his knife.

He believed her, and everything that she had said seemed to match up with the few stories he remembered his father telling him. Plus the fact that she was close to crying only added to how much he believed her. He did have a few questions, though.

“Why don’t I look like you?” He asked, trying not to sound too sad.

“Well, there could be many reasons, though the biggest one is that you’re naturally the color of your father. Plus this coat that you have is short and soft, suggesting it is only your ‘baby coat’. If you stay furry like this your fur will eventually become less fluffy and more sleek, which is also when you’ll get your streaks if you get them at all. However, I doubt you will keep your fur after the baby is born.”

“I see…” Keith frowned when his tail caught his attention. “Um, why don’t you have a tail?”

“Oh! Well, I kinda…” She did a scissor motion with her fingers and Keith felt himself go pale as he protectively grabbed it.

“YOU CUT IT OFF?!”

“Huh? Oh! No!” She laughed. “When I was much younger I was playing with a group of kids on my home planet and there was a rockslide. I managed to escape but my tail got trapped. I had to choose between losing my tail and losing my life. I chose the lesser loss. Though I had to relearn how to stay balanced while I walked along and trained but that didn’t take long.” She explained.

Keith nodded slowly. “Will I lose my tail?”

Krolia shook her head. “No, unlike your fur your tail and ears will likely stay how they are now, and you may occasionally grow back fur during your mating seasons, but there are suppressants that can stop your mating seasons if you don’t like going through them, though they can sometimes fail so you have to be careful with which ones you chose. Speaking of mating seasons… are you pregnant?”

Keith tensed up. “How did you-”

“A mother knows. Plus I could smell the fact that you were an Omega as soon as you stepped out of your Lion. I put two and two together.”

Keith’s ears went down with shame. “Yes…”

“Congratulations. How many? Who is the Alpha? There is an Alpha, isn’t there? Do I need to hunt them down and make them take care of you?”

Keith shook his head. “U-um, only one. The… Alpha is my boyfriend Lance; he’s a paladin like me and… he’s a really good guy. He takes care of me really well. When I’m sad he cheers me up, when I'm anxious he calms me down, when I’m scared he helps me relax, and… I like him. A lot…”

Krolia smiled. “Then that’s all that matters, but if he ever hurts you I will hunt him down and strand him on a planet so far away that nobody will be able to find him. Paladin or not.”

Keith let out a nervous chuckle.

“Speaking of Alphas and love… how is your father doing?”

Keith’s smile fell. “I… don’t know. He vanished when I was six.”

Krolia’s eyes were instantly filled with different emotions. Anger, confusion, concern. “He what?”


	83. Meeting The Mother In Law

Shiro, Lance, Hunk and Allura watched the situation over the cameras, only wishing that they could hear what was being said. They were simply watching just to make sure neither Keith or his mother freaked out and attacked each other, though for the moment they were only talking, sitting a few feet away from each other.

“So that’s really Keith’s mom?” Hunk said and Shiro nodded.

“Blood tests confirmed it.” He stated, his arms crossed.

“That’s so cool. I wish I had a space parent.”

“We have Coran.” Lance pointed out. “He’s kinda like a dorky space grandpa.”

“Ooh, good point.”

“Do you think Keith is doing alright? You all know him the best; how will he handle this news?” Allura asked, her blue eyes full of worry for the young paladin.

“Well… I don’t know, in all honesty. We’re as close to a family as Keith has gotten for a very long time, and now being faced with a biological family… it might be a lot to take in. We’ll have to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn’t freak out from all of this. Though the chances of all this happening now…” Shiro grabbed his chin as he thought. “I doubt this was all an accident. I think Kolivan planned it; if not all of it then quite a bit of it.”

“Are you suggesting he knew who Keith’s mother was this entire time?” Allura frowned.

“I believe it. But why bring us into it now all of a sudden?” Asked Lance “Kinda bad timing, isn’t it?”

“Well, from what Kolivan said he didn’t even know that Krolia was his mother. The mission was just to rescue her and Mr. Holt. This really could just all be one big coincidence.” 

Hunk said, “It does happen sometimes, you know. Not very often but it does happen.”

“Well yeah, but how many times does it happen to us?” Lance pointed out, making Hunk frown.

“I’m going to go talk to Kolivan; we need some answers. I want to know what he’s planning for Krolia now anyway. Is he just planning to send her away or is he going to use Krolia to get to Keith? This may just be one big plan to get him to work for the Blade of Marmora and get him away from us, and if that’s the case we need to put our foot down now before he puts his plan into action.” Shiro said, putting his arms down before he made his way out of the room.

“I’m going to go get started on dinner.”

“Ah! Yes, I will speak to Pidge, Matt and Mr. Holt to decide where we should go next.” Allura smiled.

“Then I guess I’ll go check on Keith.” Lance smiled nervously, “And introduce myself to Krolia.”

“Good luck, Lance.” Hunk chuckled. “Don’t worry; Keith won’t let her hurt you… much.” He gave Lance a pat on the back before they all left the room, leaving Lance by himself as he looked at the camera again with a frown.

Keith and Krolia had gotten to their feet and Krolia was reaching for Keith’s blade. What was she doing now?

 

“I can’t get it to activate.” Keith sighed after a moment, playing with his Marmora Blade. “I mean, sometimes it works and other times it doesn’t.”

Krolia frowned, standing up which caused Keith to stand. He didn’t want to be on the ground if she was going to get to her feet. He still didn’t fully trust her. Krolia reached for the blade with a smile. “Lemme see.”

Keith hesitated. If he gave it to her he would be unarmed. Was that such a great idea? She wouldn’t hurt him… would she? He slowly held the blade out, handing it to her with a timid smile. Krolia took it in her hands, examining it as she formed it effortlessly in her hands. She let out a hum.

“It lets you activate it because you’re part Galra in the first place, but I thought with your pregnancy forcing you to be closer to your Galra side that it would be easier to activate. Tell me, have you had problems with any other things since the beginning of your pregnancy?”

“You mean besides sleeping, holding down food, and feeling like a burden on my friends?” He crossed his arms. “No, nothing comes to mind.”

She nodded, deactivating the blade before handing it back to him. “Well, keep an eye out for that, okay? As your pregnancy continues you may temporarily begin to lose your human side to the Galra side. You might have a hard time activating things that you as a human would be able to activate before without a problem.” She gently patted his head with a smile, then turned as the door opened.

Lance was standing there, looking incredibly nervous. “Hey, Keith.”

“Hey.” Keith put the blade away before shying away from Krolia’s hand as he jogged over to Lance. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just came to check on you.” Lance smiled, kissing Keith’s forehead and smiling when Keith blushed and put his ears down. “Do you need anything?”

“Nope, I think I’m okay.” He smiled, then jumped when Krolia was once again by his side. Keith sighed, making sure to stand slightly between Krolia and Lance. “Lance, this is Krolia…. Krolia, this is… Lance. M-my Mate.”

Lance blushed, getting slightly nervous while Krolia examined him carefully.

“He is rather small for an Alpha… though considering your own height he seems to fit.”

Keith felt more offended than anything else. He knew he was small; she didn’t have to point it out. Lance, however, didn’t budge, keeping himself standing straight, his blue eyes watching Krolia carefully.

“You taking care of my son?” She asked and Lance nodded.

“Yes Ma’am.”

“You’re the one who got him pregnant?”

“Yes.”

“Do you love him?”

Keith frowned at that question. That was a bit sudden, wasn’t it? He was about to tell her that she was out of line but didn’t have the chance when Lance quickly answered without a hint of hesitation.

“More than anything.”

Krolia smiled, giving Lance a pat on his shoulder. “Good lad. You found yourself a great Alpha, Keith.” She beamed at him and then frowned when she Keith’s dazed expression, his face bright red as he looked at Lance with wide eyes. Krolia chuckled. “I will leave you two alone to talk for a moment. I have things to talk to Kolivan about.” She walked out of the room, glancing back at her son as she did so.

“Keith? You okay?” Lance asked, touching the side of Keith’s face.

Keith snapped out of his daze as he hid his face. “Y-y-yeah, I-I-I’m fine. B-but you didn’t have to tell Krolia that. I-I mean, lying to her will just get you in trouble.”

Lance tilted his head. “Who said I lied? I do love you, Keith. More than anything. More than the ocean, more than Earth, more than being a Paladin. I love you more than all of that put together.” He slowly and gently pulled Keith’s hands from his face before he kissed Keith’s forehead.

Keith’s face was so red with a blush that it was tinting the tips of his ears and his shoulders. His eyes were wide with shock, confusion and more emotions than Lance could put together. Keith closed his eyes tightly before he basically jumped into Lance’s arms, wrapping his arms around the back of Lance’s neck, pressing his mouth against his.

Lance wrapped his arms around Keith’s waist, spinning Keith as he kissed him back. Lance did his best to ignore the tears dripping down Keith’s face as he held him close. It was a lot for Keith to take in, and Lance would let him cry as much as he needed to. His mother coming back, the pregnancy, and the sudden burst of love would be too much for anybody to handle, and Keith was no different.

 

“I’m so glad you’re safe.” Pidge hiccuped, having not moved from her father's side since they landed. Between the crying she had done on the trip there and the crying she had done as her Father told them what he had been through, she looked more than a little exhausted.

“Me too, and I have to tell you just how proud I am of you, Katie.” He said, running his hand gently through her hair. “From what you and your friends have done here, and how hard you guys have worked, how can I not be proud?” Her father looked over at Matt, who had fallen asleep on the other side of him, Matt’s head on his shoulder. “And I can’t wait to tell your Mother how well you are doing.”

Pidge nodded, rubbing her eyes. “I-I can’t go with you. W-we have a lot of work left to do here and-”

“I’m not asking you to. I know how important it is for you to stay up here and the work you do couldn’t be done without you. So I’m going to go back to Earth on my own and tell them all that’s going on up here.I need to help Earth get ready for the inevitable war that’s coming this way; they need to know what’s going on and be prepared for it.”

Pidge smiled worriedly. She remembered what had happened when Shiro landed back on Earth. The treatment he had gotten. “You’re going to need proof.” She told him. “Something that will prove that you’re not just suffering from PTSD from being in space for over two years.”

“What kind of proof?”

Pidge frowned. “I can think of a few things, but we’re going to need to go to Olkarion. Are you okay going on a trip for a few days?”

Her father hugged her tightly. “Of course. I want to spend as much time with you as I can before I go back, if you’ll let me.”

Pidge nodded. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” She smiled, closing her eyes as she slowly slipped into unconsciousness, falling asleep on his shoulder.

 

“Kolivan, we have to talk.” Shiro said, approaching the Marmora leader who looked over at him with that same expressionless face had had since the day they met. He had heard Keith say how he laughed and smiled, but honestly he didn’t believe Kolivan was actually capable of any emotions. He seemed to have what some people used to call a ‘resting bitch face’.

“About what, Shiro?” He asked.

“Did you know that Krolia was Keith’s mother?”

Kolivan stayed quiet for a moment before he nodded. “I had my suspicions. After meeting you all for the first time I began to look back on our past information that we had received over these past 25 years and discovered that the only one of us who had ever even been in that corner of the Galaxy was Krolia. But as I mentioned before, until a few days ago I had every reason to believe Krolia had been killed. I wasn’t going to bring up her name or anything about her until she was discovered to be alive.”

“So if you sent us in and Keith saw his mother die right in front of him, what would you have done? Do you even know what kind of damage that could have done to him emotionally?” Shiro snapped.

Kolivan didn’t react to the aggression, only letting out a sigh. “It was a risk I had to take. Either an asset died during a rescue and he never found out or he met her and got answers about Galran pregnancy that only she can answer. Unlike the rest of the Marmora, Krolia always showed her emotions, as did Keith. I knew someday she would have a child if she hadn’t already. The rest of us never had that chance, so we couldn’t be much help to Keith when he needed it. I took a calculated risk and got a decent result. I will not apologize for my actions. Everything ended up fine and now two of your fellow paladins have been reunited with their families. Is that a crime?”

Shiro wanted to get mad but he couldn’t argue with him, because he had a point. Matt and Pidge had Sam back in their lives and Keith got to meet his mother. Family was a good thing to have, but he still couldn’t shake the feeling that something else was going to happen. “What are you going to do with Krolia now? Send her away?”

Kolivan sighed slightly. “Not exactly. I’m taking her with me to Headquarters to get all the information she learned over these past seven years. Then send her on vacation. If she ends up coming back here to spend time with Keith again then she does that. She deserves a chance to relax, but the war comes first.”

Shiro clenched his fist. “You’re an ass.” He growled. Kolivan simply nodded.

“As you have mentioned. Now unless you need something else I have better things to do than continue this conversation.” Kolivan said, then walked away.


	84. Season 6 (Authors Note)

Hey guys, I know it's been a while and I"m sorry about that. I've been doing my best to work on these next few chapters but they've been coming to me a bit slower than normal. I'll hopefully have the next chapter up by the end of the month, which I know is a long time to wait but please keep being patient with me.

Now that season 6 is out though I've been able to use what I learned from this season to push through the writers block to the best of my abilities. Now, feel free to scream, rant and sob in the comments because that season was nothing but pain and suffering.


	85. Authors Note #Who Knows?

Hello everybody, again XD

Yeah I know this chapter is taking a very long time to get out and I'm sorry about that. Between having to go to the E.R. for... personal and emotional reasons, spending time with my new Niece, trying to find a job, and just dealing with a bunch of personal shit it's been hard to try and write. I am still working on this story though, every chance that I get. Whenever I wanna write I make sure to pull it up and write a little bit of it at a time.

The good news is you guys don't have to wait much longer to find out the gender of the baby.

The bad news is I can't tell you how many chapters it'll be between here, then, and when the baby is actually born.

Season 6 brought a lot of idea's with it and hopefully Season 7 will be the ass kicker that I need to put the next chapter out and really start throwing these chapters in your face like I used to be able to do.

Sorry it's taking such a long time but you guys could help me by just doing what you're doing. I love reading your comments and kind words that help me every single day to keep going on and pushing forward. Even if you can't find something nice to say or you're too shy to say anything just post a funny picture or something in the comments. It doesn't have to be Voltron related just anything that makes you guys laugh send to me so I can get a good laugh out of it too. It'll really help on my bad days.

Anyways I'm going to get back to work on the next chapter, I just felt bad for having not given you guys an update in so long.


	86. Until We Meet Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter and many of the other chapters a while before season 7 (and maybe even season 6) was out. Anyways, a lot of the details have been changed. Sorry it took so long but life got in the way. I do have other chapters done, but I'm going to try and space chapters further apart. XD Though we've all seen how good I am at that. Any who, I hope you enjoy!

Keith rubbed his shoulder nervously as he looked for Krolia. She would be joining them for dinner, and while Keith was worried about how she would react to having so many people around he was more nervous of how the rest of the team would react to her. He didn’t know how he felt about Krolia himself but if his team… his family, reacted to her, how would he handle that? If she was actually his mother then he wanted her to be a part of his life, but he also knew that he couldn’t take the heartbreak of something happening to her. 

What if she got hurt because of him? What if she died? What if she left them without saying goodbye? What if she vanished without a trace like his father did? Could he handle that emotionally? Not to mention that there was so much going on in his life that he didn’t know if he could have her around him, but the idea of his mom just vanishing again without a trace…. That would likely be too much to bear.

Keith frowned when he saw Krolia talking to Kolivan, and he quickly ducked behind a wall. He didn’t want to bother them but he also didn’t want to just walk away in case something was going on. He wanted to jump in if Kolivan and Krolia started to fight.

“I know this is an emotional time for you, Krolia, but it is imperative that we learn the information that you gathered during these past few years.” Kolivan said, his arms crossed. “I understand that you want to stay with your son, and if I didn’t know what I know you would be allowed to stay with him, but from the little you have told me and from the information that we’ve been able to gather these past few weeks about the Galra Movements, I suspect that it is only a matter of time before they send somebody for your son.”

“It’s not because he’s my son that they’ll come after him.” She snapped and Kolivan sighed.

“I know that, Krolia, I do; but if they learn that he is your son then they’ll only come after him harder. All these things are stacking against him and it’s only getting more dangerous the longer we sit on our hands and do nothing. We have to consider the fact that so far out of all the other Paladins, your son is the only other one aside from Shiro that can control the Black Lion. That is more than enough for the Galra Empire to come after him for. They could turn him and use him to hurt the Blade as well as Voltron itself. Your son is a good kid, but he’s also an emotional wreck, especially right now. We need to learn as much as possible before you bring this information to Keith and his team.”

Krolia was quiet for a moment. “I understand. When do we leave?”

“Tomorrow morning. It will give you enough time to say goodbye to your son, but remember that you’ll be able to come back to him as soon as we’re done. From the plans that have been shared by Commander Holt and Princess Allura, they are planning on going to Olkarion for a long while as they get things figured out. You will have the chance to catch up with them there, so long as we get our work done in a timely manner.”

Krolia let out a soft sigh. “That’s fair. Thank you, Kolivan.”

“Don’t thank me. I’m just glad you’re alive.” Kolivan said, and Keith could hear the smile in his voice.

Keith frowned, looking down at his feet as he heard Kolivan and Krolia walk away, seemingly unaware that he was even there. That was something he preferred, honestly. He didn’t want either of them to see how close he was to having a breakdown.

Krolia sounded as though she was planning on coming back for him, but the idea that she was leaving to begin with was still more upsetting to him than anything else. Would she leave without a word like his father did all those years ago or would she actually come back to him?

Keith wrapped his arms around himself, his ears going down as he slowly made his way towards the dining room. Kolivan would probably lead her there eventually, but for now Keith really didn’t want to talk to anybody. His tail wrapped around his leg as he made his way through the castle halls, his mind on everything but where he was going, which was how he ended up crashing right into Princess Allura.

Keith stumbled back slightly. “Sorry, Allura; are you alright?”

“I’m fine.” She chuckled, seeming to notice Keith’s demeanor. “Are you? You appear close to tears.”

“Y-yeah, just pregnancy emotions.” He said with a laugh, rubbing under his nose.

“I am still unsure what this ‘pregnancy’ entails.” She stated. “Because of the war I was unable to spend much time with species carrying young, let alone a human or a Galra, or both in your case. How will the infant come out when the time comes?”

“Well, um, I don’t know about Galra, but with humans only females can have kids, or people with human genitalia. From what Ryner said, though, I was supposed to develop something during my transformation that I just didn’t, so they’re going to need to cut the baby out.” Keith said, only now realizing how scary that sounded out loud.

“I see.” She nodded slowly, then smiled. “From the questions about Altean pregnancies that Coran was able to answer I have discovered that Alteans only carry their young for a few weeks before giving birth and beginning the second stage of the birthing process. Alteans give birth to a clear bubble which the young is inside of and the child then develops the rest of the way, and when the time comes only the mother of the young is able to open the bubble to retrieve the fully developed young from inside.”

“So… they never get to feel the babies kick?”

“Kick?” Allura tilted her head slightly.

Keith chuckled. “Yeah, um, for humans, and… me, I guess, whatever the hell I am, the baby moves around inside. Almost like it’s in a nest and trying to get comfortable inside, then when it’s close for the baby to be born it flips completely upside down so the head is down. In all this moving, though, we can feel it from the inside and if we put our hands on the outside we can sometimes feel it.”

“Really?” She seemed to hesitate for a moment, glancing at the small bump of Keith’s stomach. “May I feel it?”

Keith nodded slowly, gently taking her hand and putting it on his stomach. It had been weird at first, having people touch him, but it seemed like so long as it was people that he cared about and trusted it wasn’t so bad. Allura looked confused, her eyes widening when the baby slowly moved and pushed against her hand.

“That is… incredible.” She said with a smile, her eyes full of amazement. “What else can you tell me about your pregnancy?”

“Not much… honestly, Ryner knows more than I do… and Krolia knows probably even more than her. So they’re the ones you need to ask.”

“I may have to do that.” She smiled. “Seeing how we are set to land on Olkarion in four days time, I won’t have to wait long to learn more about you and your species. Now we should make our way to the dining room; I’m sure you are quite hungry now.”

Keith’s stomach growled at the mention of food and he slowly nodded. “Yeah… food sounds nice.” He admitted with a smile.

 

Introductions were… awkward to say the least, especially with Keith as upset as he was. He could hardly look at any of his friends, let alone at Krolia or Kolivan. How could he, knowing that she was planning to leave? It wouldn’t be so bad if she said goodbye, or at least that’s what he kept telling himself, but it was still hard. Anxiety gripped his heart as a million questions rushed through him, worries about when and if she would come back, if she would be safe, and if he would be left alone again. 

The whole thing brought up the fact that his mother had to leave him when he was a baby and his father vanished without a trace. Would his child be left alone? What if something happened to him or Lance? What if they died and the baby had to grow up on their own? Would it be easier growing up in space than it had been on Earth or would it be even harder? He knew that the other paladins would take care of them, but what if something happened to all of them? What if they were left completely alone, surrounded by strangers like he had been?

“Keith?” Shiro’s voice was quiet as he sat on the left side of Keith. “Are you alright?”

Keith nodded slowly, trying not to be startled by the sudden noise. “Um…. yeah. Just a lot going on.” He said with a weak smile. He stirred his food slowly. He wanted to eat; he felt like he was starving but he also felt that if he took a bite of his food he would just end up throwing it up again.

“So you’re really Keith’s mom?” Hunk asked, and Krolia nodded firmly.

“Yes.”

“I see, so he’s Half Galra. See, when we first found out that he was even part Galra we were all wondering how Galra he was - or rather, I was wondering - I don’t know about the rest of them but I was definitely curious about it. But now that we know he’s Half Galra it makes sense why he was able to activate the Marmora Blade and why he was able to have a Mating Season like this. After all, I doubt somebody who is less than half Galra would be able to have a heat like this.” Hunk said, beginning to ramble on in the way he often did.

“Anyways-” Allura let out a chuckle, saving Hunk from rambling himself into a big circle. “It’s nice to meet you. Your son has been a great help in the battle against Zarkon. In fact, if it weren’t for him many of our missions would have failed.”

“They would have?” Krolia sounded only slightly surprised.

“Of course! Keith’s connection with the Red and Black Lions came in handy on more than one occasion.” Coran said. “Though he does have a bit of an explosive temper and has a hard time listening to authority, but he is one of the most loyal people we’ve met since the beginning of the war.”

Keith looked down at his hands. They were saying all these good things about him… but they all felt like lies. Him? Loyal? He ran off all the time to do his own thing in battles. Explosive temper: that was an understatement. He yelled at people all the time and got bossy when he got scared. He let out a chuckle to himself.

How could he expect to be a parent if he was always running off or yelling at people? Maybe leaving the baby with Lance… or maybe just leaving the baby in general. He didn’t want the baby to be alone, but he also didn’t want to be the reason that the baby was a mess. He shouldn’t be around anybody who could be influenced by what he did in life.  
Lance genty took Keith’s hand from under the table, giving it a gentle squeeze before smiling at him. Keith pressed his lips tightly together and forced a smile, but it was hard to keep it up when he could feel the tightness in his chest. He was so… scared. He really didn’t want to run away but he was scared. He didn’t want the baby to be alone but he felt like the baby would be better off without him. Anybody would be better off without him. Especially his friends.

“I, um… I’m not hungry anymore. Thanks for the food, Hunk.” Keith said, pulling his hand from Lance’s before getting up and walking away. His eyes were cast towards the floor as he tried to calm his breathing.

Keith was so tired and exhausted; he just wanted to curl up in the nest in Lance’s room and go to sleep.

A hand grabbed Keith’s wrist, startling him and making him turn him around. Lance was behind him, holding his hand with a gentle smile.

“Hey… what’s wrong?” Lance asked and Keith forced a smile.

“What makes you think something’s wrong?”

“Because I know you, and I know this isn’t easy on you. I don’t expect you to be okay, but… I would like to help if I can. So… what’s wrong?”

Keith felt his bottom lip tremble slightly as he looked away.

 

Lance frowned, running his fingers through Keith’s hair as he slept with his head on his lap. Keith’s ears were down, his tail wrapped around his leg. Lance sighed. He wanted to help Keith and wanted to make sure that he wasn’t afraid of anything bad happening, but it was becoming harder and harder to calm his fears. Keith didn’t want his mother to leave, not when he just got her back, but he also didn’t want her to stay to protect his heart from getting too close to her and getting hurt by her in the future. Having his mother around was also causing another problem: Keith was beginning to question everything. He didn’t want to have the baby but he didn’t want to give up on the baby. He didn’t want to be a part of the baby’s life but he didn’t want the baby to grow up alone.

He was a mess and Lance couldn’t do anything but hold him and try to help him feel better. Lance scowled slightly when Krolia came into the room, and while Lance knew she wasn’t there to physically hurt Keith, she had made him cry and that wasn’t something Lance took lightly.

“He’s asleep… I suppose it’s for the best.” She said, walking over.

“You’re leaving.”

“I see… so Keith did overhear us… yes, I’m leaving. But it’s only for a few days; I will be joining you guys on Olkarion once I finish what needs to be done with the Marmora. There is a lot of information I need to share with them about what happened these past seven years… I know he might not understand right now, but I hope he learns that I won’t leave him for long.” She reached over, gently touching the side of Keith’s face. Keith let out a soft whine as she pushed his hair out of his face. “Until then, though, please... take care of him. And if I find out that you hurt him, I will destroy you. Paladin or not.”

“I could say the same to you.” Lance snarled. “Coming into his life all of a sudden; how do you think that’s going to affect him? You don’t know the first thing about Keith, and if you did you would know that you should have kept your mouth shut about being his mom until you knew that you weren’t going to have to take off again. Keith is incredibly strong, but he’s been through more in his life than anybody else I know. So don’t come back until you’re certain that you’re not going to abandon him again.” He glared.

Krolia thought about it for a moment before she nodded. “I understand.” She bent down, kissing the top of Keith’s head. “I will see you again soon.” She whispered, then looked at Lance once more before walking away without another word, leaving Lance to let out a slow breath of relief.

He had honestly expected Krolia to rip him a new one but he was glad that she hadn’t started yelling. Keith didn’t need the extra stress of him and his mother fighting over him. Lance leaned back against the couch, rubbing Keith’s shoulder again and looking down at him. Keith, despite not being awake for the conversation seemed relaxed, even in his sleep.

Lance sighed gently, leaning his head back before closing his eyes as he began to drift to sleep. Perhaps they would be able to ignore all the stress they were going through if they just slept through it all.


	87. Monsters and Mana

“What should we do?” Allura asked, looking at Keith, who was sitting down in his normal seat on the bridge. He hadn’t said a word to them since Krolia had left, which wasn’t surprising. Nobody knew what he was thinking, but it was clear that whatever he was thinking about was important, at least to him.

His arms were crossed, his tail wrapped around him, the furry tip gently tapping against his stomach, much like a cat who had an attitude.

“I’m not sure…” Shiro admitted with a frown. “I’ve never really seen him like this. I mean, he talks to me now and then even when he doesn’t acknowledge anyone else, but not today. He doesn’t even seem to realize that we’re here anymore.”

“He could be in shock.” Hunk pointed out. “His mom came in, dropped a big bombshell that changed his life and then left without a word… I’d be pretty upset too.”

Lance stuck his hand in his pockets. Lance knew that Keith wouldn’t be taking it well but he didn’t expect Keith to completely shut down like this. They all knew Krolia was planning on coming back soon enough, but the way that Keith was acting it was almost like he didn’t want her to come back. Lance hesitated for a moment before he walked towards Keith, putting his hand on Keith’s shoulder.

“What are you thinking about?” He asked and after a long moment Keith looked up. His eyes were big and full of confusion.

“What if she doesn’t come back?” Keith asked, his voice barely a whisper. “What if she abandons me again?”

Lance knelt next to his seat, hugging Keith and rubbing his back. “She’ll be back, Keith. I promise. Just breathe, alright? We’ll be at Olkarion in just a few hours and you’ll be able to distract yourself as much as you want until she comes back, and we’re here to help you do just that if you want to. There are plenty of games here on the ship we can play, or if you want to we can make up our own game to play.”

“I’m not… really a game player…” Keith admitted softly.

“Well, then what do you want to do?” Hunk asked, walking over.

“I don’t know.” Keith sighed, his tail twitching. “I just… I don’t know. I’ll be okay; just leave me alone.”

“Alright… we’re here if you need us.” Lance offered, and he and Hunk walked back away from Keith with a frown. “Well, that was a dead end.”

“Maybe he might like Monsters and Mana?” Shiro suggested. “He might need a distraction; just something to get his mind off of Krolia.”

“That’s a great idea!” Allura said happily, clapping. “Coran, will you be our LoreMaster?”

“But of course, Princess!” He smiled, puffing out his chest. “Nobody is a better Loremaster than I!”

“Alright, I’ll get Keith.” Shiro said. “We’ll see you guys in a few minutes.”

“How do you plan on getting Keith?” Lance asked.

“You don’t want to know.” Shiro smiled, then walked over to Keith.

“And on that note, let’s go! We can invite Matt, Pidge, and Sam on our way down.” Hunk smiled, pulling Lance out of the room.

 

Twenty minutes later they were all sitting in the main room, including a very upset Keith who was sulking even more now, though being carried in by Shiro probably didn’t help the situation. It was funny for the rest of them.

“Play one round with us, and then you can go off and do whatever you want.” Shiro said and Keith sighed.

“Fine, whatever.” He mumbled gently. “How do we play?”

“First things first! Fill out your character sheet on this. Once you input the information of your character in, a silhouette of your character will appear on the board in front of us!” Coran explained. “Then I, the Loremaster, will read part of the storyline from this book so you know the general mission you all are going on. Depending on the number you roll on this 20-sided die, it determines what you can see or sense and what you can do or how far you can move in a fight. Don’t worry… I’ll explain as the game continues.” Coran smiled.

Keith shrugged slightly, looking at the orange tablet in his hand as he began to fill it out. He chose the Ranger class simply based on how it sounded and went with his own name. He wasn’t in the mood to be creative and come up with a name for himself. He then looked around the group.

Shiro had chosen the Paladin class, which Keith personally thought was a great choice but the others had given him crap about it. Lance was a Rogue, but he was some kind of Furry too. It slightly concerned Keith; did Lance have a thing for animals? Did Lance like him more like this than when he was normal?

Hunk had chosen a Cleric, which Keith thought fit him. Pidge was a fighter, a Tank of some kind. She looked like a dwarf. Matt was a Bard. Sam was a Wizard. Allura was a Ranger. Then Coran was the Loremaster. Keith had no idea what any of these meant, but despite that he decided to go with it anyways. The others were already excited to play and Keith would feel bad ruining the fun for everybody again.

“Alright, then let’s get started!” Coran smiled. “Let’s roll for initiative.”

 

Krolia sighed, looking at the map in front of her. A lot had changed in the past seven years, both for the better and the worse, depending on the area of the universe that she was looking at. It was… upsetting to say the least. She had spent so much time away from her son, from the man she loved, and from the planet she once called home, and for what? One or two dozen planets getting their freedom just to have twice the amount of planets be taken over by the Galra again? How long was this war going to continue on?

She was back in Keith’s life now; he needed her and yet here she was, waiting for Kolivan to double-check some of the information that she had shared with him. Not to mention Keith was pregnant now and needed her now more than ever. She continued staring at the map, beginning to move it so she could look in the direction that Earth was. She couldn’t understand why Austin would up and leave their son after promising to protect him. Had something happened to Austin? Was he alright? Did she need to save him? If so, how could she do it without putting Earth and Keith in danger?

“Krolia?” Kolivan said, walking into the room.

Krolia looked up at him. “Yes?”

“We’ve gotten word about Prince Lotor’s plans from an inside source. That, along with the information you’ve provided, we now know for sure that he is planning to go after the only person who can drive the Black and Red Lions. Keith.”

Krolia frowned. “What do we do?” She asked.

“We need to do our best to make sure that he doesn’t get ahold of Keith, so when we’re done here you need to go to Keith and stay with him.”

“Gladly, but… what do we do about Lotor? Surely he has something up his sleeve to get to Keith.”

“We’re sure he does, but we’ll learn that kind of information and let you know as soon as we do. Even Lotor isn’t dumb enough to try something while Keith is with the other Paladins; as long as he stays close to them he won’t be in as much danger.”

 

“Why do you always go off on your own?!” Matt yelled at Keith, who crossed his arms. “We’re on a mission together for a reason; you could have gotten yourself killed!”

Keith sighed, looking at the Bard. “I said I'm sorry! Besides, I got the berries so why does it matter?” Keith said, holding up the sack full of berries.

“Yeah, but if you had died getting the berries you would have died, we would have lost the berries, and the dragon would continue to be sick.” Hunk pointed out.

“Ugh, whatever! Let’s just do this, okay?”

“Well, roll for perception now that Keith’s back with the group.”

Sam rolled the dice and examined the berries, looking at it for a moment before he smiled. “Luckily, yes he did. However we’re running out of time to make the potion for the dragon. If we don’t hurry the dragon will destroy the village.”

“Great.” Grumbled Keith as they began walking along. He obviously wasn’t having fun with the way that they were playing but it was also clear that he wasn’t going to give up yet.

They made their way along until they came across a clearing. They looked up, seeing the large golden dragon flying around for a moment before it would land, begin to scratch itself on the ground, trees, and anything around him. It was obvious just by looking at the red spots on the gold scales that he was sick. They had all the stuff to make the potion needed to help the Dragon; the hardest part now would be getting the Dragon to calm down enough to help him.

“Hunk, can you cast anything on it? Perhaps some sort of calming spell?” Allura asked.

“Even if I could, I’m not a high enough level to do anything.”

“And the only way I could help would be attacking it until I knocked it out.” Pidge shrugged.

“Alright, I’ll attack first.” Shiro said, rolling the dice. “Damn, I’m doing a low level move this time so you guys will have to make up for it.” Shiro smiled, then ran towards the Dragon.

Matt went next, playing music to attempt to soothe the Dragon as he ran towards it. Next was Pidge who began cutting trees down, attempting to slow it down. Allura began shooting arrows, hitting near its feet and making them stick to the ground, but only for a moment. Lance went next, throwing knives at the beast. Keith rushed at the dragon himself, swinging his sword and stopping it from running or moving too far from where it had stopped. Hunk stayed behind with Sam, both of them doing their part to make the potion to help the poor beast.

“Any time now!” Pidge yelled, just barely dodging the dragon’s tail as it slammed down.

Hunk grabbed one of the bottles, throwing it and making the glass shatter on the dragon’s forehead. The dragon froze, looking around in confusion as the spots on its’ scales began to slowly vanish. The dragon calmed down, looking around slowly before it shook like a wet dog, then took off into the air, flying away.

“We did it!” Lance cheered, jumping up from his seat before looking at Keith, who looked up at him with a gentle smile.

“Yeah, we did. Great work, everybody.” Shiro smiled slightly.

“I wanna play again.” Matt grinned.

“I’m in.” Pidge perked up.

“What about you, Keith?” Lance asked with a gentle smile and Keith shook his head.

“Thanks, but no thanks. I’m going to go, um… do something else.” Keith let out a soft smile. “Preferably anything but this. Like make a snack or something.” Keith got to his feet and made his way out of the room, soon being followed by Shiro.

“Keith.” Shiro closed the door behind him and gently took Keith’s arm. “What’s going on, buddy? Talk to me…”

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Keith grumbled.

“Obviously there is, Keith, or you wouldn’t be acting like this. So please, talk to me.”

Keith clenched his jaw slightly before he sighed. “Fine. I guess I’m just a little… frustrated. I mean, Krolia shows up, tells me she’s my mom, tells me a story about how she met my dad and then up and left again. I know she said she’ll be back and what she’s doing is important but damn it, this is so… frustrating. I have so many questions! My Galra history, this pregnancy and what to expect, what she’s been doing all this time and… Just… damn it, I don’t know what to do anymore…” He said, covering his ears as he crouched down on the ground. “I don’t know anything about anything right now.” He whimpered as the baby kicked. “AND THE LONGER I’M PREGNANT THE MORE I WANT TO JUMP INTO A GODDAMNED SUN!”

“Well… I can’t let you jump into a sun; we’d all miss you too much and Lance would never forgive me or himself. Maybe you should try to focus on one thing at a time. Like, for now let’s focus on the easiest and littlest thing that we can handle first. What to expect. We still have the Galra Pregnancy book and we’re only a few minutes away from getting to Olkarion. Ryner helped you before, right? Well, maybe she’ll be willing to help you again.”

Keith liked the idea of learning more, but he worried about what he would learn about. Was it part of the ‘Galra Way’ to abandon their children? Or was it the opposite way and Krolia really did just leave to protect them? Part of him still felt that the mission was more important than family to Krolia. More important than him.

Keith wasn’t blind; he knew the work that she did was important, but he also knew that he hadn’t been the same since the day his father left. Maybe he would have never left if she had been there. Or maybe he wouldn’t have spent the majority of his life alone, going from home to home and looking for a place to fit in. Was his child doomed to live the same kind of life that he had? He hoped not.

“Okay… I’ll talk to her.” Keith said with a shaky breath.


	88. Boy, Girl, Twins, or a Galra?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody! Before this chapter begins I'd just like to give you guys a bit of an update and a warning at the same time. Let's start with the update.
> 
> I've been having an easier time with my Mental Health lately, by that I mean that I'm not sitting in my bedroom, curled up on the bed sulking in my own depression and anxiety. But between my beautiful fiance, and the comments on this story that cheer me up on my worst days I'm doing alright. Plus, I would feel terrible if I did something before the end of this story, I couldn't leave you guys hanging like that, especially not when shit is about to hit the fan. Also I've been going through some crap with my family, by that I mean that my little sister has stolen nearly 1,000$ from my parents and now I'm doing my best to try and support them as well as try to help my fiance's Grandmother get out of a bad situation. So yeah, things are a bit crazy over here.
> 
> Now for the warning, I'm going to my states capital for a week because my sister-in-law is finding out the gender of her baby and wants my fiance and I to be there for it. So I've been working a lot on this story and I'm still hoping to finish it before the start of next year but I still have at least another 10 chapters planned, maybe up to 20 more chapters. But like I said, shit is about to hit the fan in this story and I can't leave you hanging, especially considering that I haven't put the Contest Winner in yet. Though they will be in during the next few chapters to introduce the and then will show up in person during the last five or so chapters as a main character.
> 
> Anyways, this is a pretty long and important chapter so have fun and tell me what you guys think in the comments!

Ryner and Krisella were waiting for them when they landed on the planet. Whether it was because they had important things to discuss with Allura or they were waiting to see Keith wasn’t apparent until they all left the ship. Ryner walked over to Allura, bowing slightly to her as Krisella ran right up to Keith with a big smile.

“Keith!” She said excitedly. “You’re back! How are you doing? How is your pregnancy going? How do you feel? Do you need anything?” She hugged Keith, causing him to tense up and look to Lance and Shiro desperately, however Lance was too busy laughing to help and Shiro was talking to Ryner.

“I’m… alright. You’re a lot more… outgoing than before?”

“Huh? Oh! No; last time it was just because I had to keep your pregnancy a secret but now all your friends know, right? So I don’t have to keep quiet about it! Besides, you promised to answer my questions when you came back and I have thought of a LOT more questions since I saw you last!”

Keith was relieved when she finally let him go. “Alright, but only if I get to ask some of my own questions.” He bargained.

“Oh! Of course! That seems fair! Let’s go!” She took Keith’s wrist and began to drag him away when Ryner spoke up.

“Krisella.”

Krisella froze. “Y-yeah?”

Ryner looked at Keith for a moment before she sighed. “Bring him to the main room before dark, alright? We have very important things to talk about with Keith and the other Paladins.” She said. “And if Keith gets uncomfortable you let him go. Understood?”

“Yes, Ryner; I understand.” She smiled and continued pulling Keith away.

“Um, I’m going to go with him.” Lance said. “Just to keep him company.”

 

“So, um, what kind of questions do you have?” Keith asked as he and Lance looked at Krisella, who was sitting across from them.

“It’s mostly about the planet you came from; ‘Earth’, correct?” She asked with a smile. “What does it look like? Ryner once said that Pidge said it has a forest, correct? What else does Earth have; is it all forest?”

“Well, no; in fact it’s mostly ocean.” Lance explained. “Which is all water with living creatures in it. There there are large chunks of land. Some are all sand, some are forests, others are completely inhabited by our species as well as wild animals attempting to survive alongside us.” Lance said and Keith nodded slowly.

“I see.” Krisella was taking notes. “Is it similar to our planet at all?” She wondered.

“In a few ways. But we can definitely see the differences between our planets.” Keith said quietly. “We’re not able to talk to trees or communicate with anything around us like you guys can. Not to mention our planet currently has an ever-growing hole in the atmosphere that is slowly causing damage to the planet, and our race is the one that caused it so we have to let it heal itself.” He said. “Our species is more of a danger to our planet, while you guys are able to heal yours and make it better…”

“I see… what about Earthling pregnancies?” She asked, tilting her head slightly. “After all you’re just passed your 9th week, which is about halfway through your pregnancy, so I’m curious about how the two pregnancies vary between our species.”

Keith felt his face heat up. “W-well, um… for humans pregnancies are often between a male and a female; there’s no ‘Alpha’, ‘Beta’, or ‘Omega’ with our species. The woman carries the young, typically one baby, to forty weeks, give or take a week or two. Then they have the baby and go from there.”

“I see… while here Omegas and Betas carry the young to twenty weeks… hm… I see. Alright, well, you have answered my questions, or at least enough for now. How about you ask your questions?”

Of course, now that Keith had the options to ask his questions they all got stuck in the back of his mind. “Well, uh… I know that Galran pregnancies only last around 20 weeks give or take a couple, but… how… often does a pregnancy make it to term?” He asked.

“From what I’ve read 90 to 91 percent of Galra pregnancies make it to term, and those chances are even higher depending on the amount of young that the Omega or Beta are carrying, though that doesn’t mean that the chances lower if only one child is conceived during the pregnancy.” Krisella explained and Keith nodded nervously.

“What are the chances of them being an Omega?” Lance spoke up.

“Well, from what Ryner told me you’re 100% Earthling as far as we know and Keith is only 50% Galra, meaning that he had a 50-50 chance of even having the option of Omega, Alpha or Beta, so your child will only have a 25% chance of having any qualities related to the Galra. They’ll be mostly Earthling. Any Galran qualities will be extremely rare and unusual to say the least. From what I heard you only are carrying one child, correct?”

“Yeah…” Keith looked down at his feet slowly.

“Well, then the chances of them having any Galran qualities will be heightened but only very slightly because of the fact that it is getting all the DNA instead of sharing it with a sibling or two, but it’s nothing to be worried about. It’s how you raise your children, not how they’re born, that affects how they act in the future. Do you have any further questions?”

Keith and Lance looked at each other for a moment before Lance finally asked.

“Well… um… how do we… I mean, what do we need before the baby is born?”

Her eyes lit up. “I AM SO GLAD YOU ASKED!” She giggled, clapping her hands.

 

Keith looked down at his hands as they all sat around a large round table with the other Paladins; Allura, Coran, and Sam Holt on one side while Ryner, Krisella, and a handful of other Olkari sat on the other side. Keith knew this was an important meeting so he tried to focus, but he was also doing his best to remember all that Krisella had told them. There were a lot of important things that the baby would need, being part Galra, not to mention what they would need simply being part human. Most of them were the same, but there were also a portion of things that would be different between the two. It would simply rely on what the child was like when he or she were born in a few weeks time.

“I suppose it’s time we start this meeting.” Ryner said, clasping her fingers together in front of her as she leaned forward slightly. “We’ve learned quite a bit of information in the past few weeks since we saw you last. With the help of the Blade Of Marmora we’ve learned about the Galra ranks and what they’re planning. As you likely know, the past few months since Zarkon’s defeat there has been a power struggle among the Galra ranks to decide the next leader. However, it appears that Zarkon’s only son, Lotor, has finally raised to the top and is now leading the Galra. We’re unsure what he’s planning but whatever it is we know one thing for sure; they are targeting both Shiro and Keith.”

Keith and Shiro looked at each other for a moment before Shiro spoke up.

“Why us?” He wondered.

“Because, you can both pilot the Black Lion, not to mention Keith is capable of driving the Red Lion, which out of the five lions are the most powerful and agile. Because of this as well as Keith’s pregnancy, it’s suggested that you either find a safe place to hunker down or make sure you travel far enough away from any Galra activity as much as you can possibly manage.”

“As much as we would like to.” Allura said after a moment. “We cannot simply ignore our jobs to protect and free the galaxy from Zarkon’s clutches. If even a single planet continues to be enslaved then we still have a job to do.” She explained quietly. “We can’t do that without Voltron, and without Keith and Shiro there is no Voltron. I understand that Keith’s pregnancy is… big and important in more than one way; however, there is more that’s going on than just our lives.”

“I agree.” Keith said. “I mean, the entire Galaxy has families that they want to protect, and I wouldn’t feel right putting this… baby above everybody else’s children. No matter how much I may want to.”

Ryner smiled softly. “I completely understand, and honestly I suspected you would never go along with it. I just wanted to make sure you had all the facts. That being said, there are things that we Olkari can do to better prepare your ship for a future fight or a quick get-away, though it will take a few days of preparation. Can you guys spare a few days here with us?”

“I guess… A few days couldn’t hurt.” Shiro smiled. “We have plenty of things we have to do on Olkarion anyways. If there is anything you need from us, please don’t hesitate to let us know.”

“And the same for you.” Ryner smiled. “We could take this chance to share our knowledge as well as help all of you prepare for the baby and the impact it will have on your life. If, of course, you’re still planning on keeping them, Keith.”

Keith thought and smiled after a moment. “Yeah… I think I am. I mean, I don’t want them to be born into a war but I also don’t want them to grow up without knowing their parents.” He refused to look at the people around him. He hadn’t really talked about this to anybody lately, especially not Lance, who deserved it more than anybody else.

“I see. One of the things we can do while we wait is check on the baby’s progress, see how their development is going along, the gender of the baby- if you want to know that information, of course.” Ryner explained. “Then we could give you all lessons in parenting by using Olkari young. It’s very different compared to Galra young, but it will help you all figure out what you need to practice on. It takes a village to raise a baby, as they say.”

“While you guys do that we can help you figure out what kind of baby-proofing your Castle needs.” Krisella smiled with a clap. “Galra babies are rumored to be the trickiest and most clever out of all species. So you’ll have to be cautious with a little one running around.”

Shiro let out a light chuckle. “If they’re anything like Keith then I think that we’ll be alright.”

Pidge laughed. “I don’t know about that; one Keith is nice but two Keiths might be a bit more tricky.”

Keith blushed slightly and looked away from Pidge, trying not to seem too frustrated with what she was saying but at the same time he knew better than anybody that she was right about that. How would they be able to handle another one of him running around raising hell? They only had a few weeks to figure it out.

 

It was the next day that Ryner took the team to the ‘hospital’ where Keith would eventually be giving birth to the baby, so long as everything went as planned. It was… intimidating, to say the least. There was a bed in the middle of the floor with a small metal table holding medical equipment on top of it. There was a smaller glass encased bed next to it that seemed to be a small healing pod.

“This is the room where you’ll be receiving your ‘c-section’.” Ryner said, having remembered the word from the last time they talked to one another.”You will be laid down on the large bed like so.” He lead Keith over and laid him down. The metal was cold and hard and put uncomfortable pressure at the base of his tail.

He sucked in a breath, trying not to pay attention to his team. He needed to listen and he knew if he looked at them he would be too embarrassed to focus on anything else. He pressed his lips tightly together, his ears going down as he clenched his fist. Ryner moved his legs slightly apart, making him nervous until she tossed a blanket over his lap and put a pillow under his head.

“You’ll be given medicine to numb the majority of the pain; in fact, you shouldn’t feel anything but pressure. Almost as though you’re getting poked just under your navel.” She gestured to his stomach. “It should only take about half an hour, and with our technology you’ll be able to walk around within a few ‘hours’ of the infant’s removal.” Ryner explained, then gestured to the smaller bed. Everybody looked towards the bed, including himself. “Once we pull out the baby we will put them in this bed and do scans. We’ll clear their breathing, scan for deformities or infections, and keep them monitored until you are healed enough to feed them.”

“How is he supposed to feed them?” Hunk asked and Keith felt his face heat up and he looked away from them.

“With his breasts, of course.” Krisella said. “Like all Galra do.”

The room fell very quiet very quickly and it took a long moment before Coran spoke up.

“That makes sense. Most races all throughout the galaxy breastfeed; why is it so strange that a Galra would be the same way?”

“But… he’s a boy.” Shiro pointed out. “Human males… can’t do that.”

“While I admit that males being able to do such things are… strange, Galran Omegas are simply different than many other species in the Galaxy.” Allura pointed out. “Though I am concerned with him being part human… will he even be able to… feed the child?”

Ryner and Krisella looked at each other.

“You’ll be able to find that out by about week 12 or so.” Ryner said. “Now how about we do an ultrasound and find out the gender, shall we? I’m sure you’ll all very excited to know that.”

 

Keith once again laid on a table, though this one was soft and padded which made him feel slightly more comfortable except for the fact that he had to have his shirt rolled up, showing the majority of his stomach and even a big portion of his hips. Keith pressed his lips tightly together, clenching his hands into a fist until Lance gently put his hand on Keith’s shoulder.

“Breathe… it’s okay.” Lance smiled reassuringly.

Keith nodded, looking at Pidge, Shiro, Coran, and Allura who were watching one of the larger screens while Hunk watched more what Ryner and Krisella were doing. Krisella rubbed a cold, clear lotion on the wand before putting it gently on Keith’s lower stomach. Keith shuddered at the cold as Lance smiled slightly with a gentle chuckle.

“Shut up.” Keith said, then looked towards the small screen near him. For a long moment Keith couldn’t figure out what he was looking at until the wand pressed on a spot on his stomach that seemed to irritate the baby enough that they began to move. It was then that he could make out the shape of a face, a stomach and chest, two little legs and even a nose and the starting of an ear. “Is that…”

“They’re beautiful.” Hunk said with a smile. 

“If I'm doing the math right, then every week for you is about two weeks for people on Earth.” Pidge said. “So your body is actually closer to being 18 weeks along in Earth time.” She rubbed her eyes, as though trying to distract herself from crying by doing calculations in her head.

Shiro walked over and touched Keith’s knee. “You’re doing great, Keith… how do you feel?”

“Like there’s a wand pressing on my bladder but… good. I-I… it really feels like a big situation… sorry I let this happen, Shiro.”

“It’s alright. This is a good thing, Keith. I’m sorry I didn’t see that before.” Shiro told him with a smile.

“Would you like to know the gender?” Krisella asked and Keith and Lance looked at one another.

“I’d like to.” Lance admitted with a slight blush.

“Sure…” Keith said and Krisella looked at the ultrasound.

“Well, they’re small so it’s hard to tell but…” She pointed to a small bump sticking out from between their legs. “So long as it isn’t too different between Earthlings and Galra. It's a little boy.”


	89. Pursued

“So now we just have to choose between two names: Atlas and Apollo.” Lance said as they continued sitting in the room together. The others had left them alone to talk about this. Despite how much they had clearly wanted to be a part of the conversation it was something that just the two for them needed to discuss fully. At least for the moment.

Keith didn’t really want to talk about it, though. He loved the kid, and he knew he would love the kid even more when they were actually here, but now that he knew this information he felt it was even more important that they put a stop to this ‘Lotor’ character before he became too much of a problem. From the sound of it though Shiro and Keith were already main targets, and if they really wanted people who could drive two lions they would eventually go after Lance as well. Keith wouldn’t let anybody else hurt Shiro; he had already been through so much. He couldn’t let anything happen to Lance either; his family was too big and he meant too much to all of them for Keith to let him die or get hurt. Though… Keith had a responsibility now too. He was carrying a baby, for one, and he found that he really wanted to spend the rest of his life with Lance.

Keith blushed at the idea. He had thought it before, of course, but they were normally some of those 2 a.m., half-awake thoughts that he blamed on being tired. Now that he knew that it wasn’t just tired delusions it was harder to ignore. Did he really want to spend the next eighty years with this idiot?

He looked at Lance, who was attempting to juggle three bottles of lotion and failing horribly.

Keith smiled slightly and put his hand on his stomach.

Yeah, he did, and longer if he had the option.

“We have a few more weeks to decide.” Keith said with a shrug. “Maybe we should have the others vote on it or something.” He suggested.

“That’s an idea!” Lance smiled, putting the bottles back. 

“Or we could just wait until he’s born and find out then.” Keith said. “I guess it all just depends on what ends up happening in the future.”

“Let’s see what the others think.” Lance said, though it was obvious that he was just impatient and excited to finally meet the baby. Honestly, though Keith was getting to that point also.

“Okay, okay. Well, for now let’s head back to the castle; it’s getting late. We’ll talk to the others tomorrow. For now… I just want to sleep.” Keith admitted with a soft chuckle.

 

“A little boy.” Hunk said with a big smile. “I can only imagine how cute they’re going to be!”

“If he looks anything like Keith he’s going to be adorable.” Shiro said. “I saw a baby picture of him once and I’ve never seen a cuter baby.”

“If he looks anything like either of his dads he’s going to be a heartbreaker.” Matt said, and Pidge giggled.

“I wonder what they’re going to name him.”

“Maybe name them after somebody? Like a parent or past family member.” Coran said. “Or maybe even one of us.” He looked rather hopeful for that part.

“Probably not that last one.” Shiro said with a weak laugh. “They might consider naming him after Keith’s father. Austin.”

“Austin? What’s an Austin?” Coran asked.

“That’s his dad’s name.” Shiro explained. “Austin Kogane. He vanished when Keith was really young and nobody ever saw him again. The way Keith talked about him when he was younger, though, I doubt he was the kind of man to just leave Keith by himself to starve to death. I think Keith once mentioned that he was a fireman, but… I can’t quite remember.”

“You’ve… known Keith for quite some time, haven’t you?” Allura asked and Shiro nodded.

“Yeah… I met him when he was twelve; six years after his dad left.” Shiro explained. “He was going to a middle school in Arizona and at the time I was being sent from school to school, talking to kids around his age about joining the Garrison, a school we have on Earth that studies space. We were doing a test on how to drive through an asteroid belt during a virtual simulator. Kid after kid tried but only a few could make it past the first stage. But then I saw this kid, sitting in the back. It was clear by how he was by himself and he didn’t even look at me that he didn’t have many, if any, friends. It took a while but I eventually convinced him to take the test. He did incredible; he made it all the way to level six before… I’m not sure what happened but he crashed. Then he took off, stole my car, and eventually got arrested. After that I basically made him get into the Garrison and we eventually got close. I was still his only friend until I eventually left on the mission for Kerberos. A mission I promised I would come back safe from… and we all know how that turned out.”

“I see… that must have been tough on him. His mother leaving when he was a baby, his father vanishing when he was young, and then you vanishing when he was a teenager…” Coran said. “Being a young teenager like that having to deal with everything by oneself had to have been extremely difficult.”

“Yeah. I mean, losing Matt and my Dad was tough, really tough. In fact, when it happened I thought nothing could be worse than that, but hearing all that Keith’s been through… it makes me feel bad. Makes me wish we were able to talk to him more about it before everything just started to fall apart.” Sighed Pidge, crossing her arms before jumping violently when Keith and Lance walked out of the room.

They were holding hands, Keith blushing slightly darker than Lance but she guessed that was more out of the fact that he had shown so much of himself during the test.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Shiro asked.

“Good; I’m good.” He had a soft smile on his face. “Just a little shocked, you know?”

“Shocked that it’s a boy?” Hunk asked.

“Just shocked in general. I knew I’d eventually learn the gender and I thought I would be ready to learn the gender, but now that I know it’s a boy it’s even more real. Kinda… unnervingly so.” Keith admitted.

“I’m sure.” Shiro smiled. “But you’re not alone, and if we have to tell you that every day we will.” Shiro promised. “Now we should go rest; we have a big few days ahead of us.”

Pidge nodded. “Matt and I will help our dad download images and videos of everything, download the schematics of the Castle to prove that everything he’s saying is true and then figure out how to get him back home safely.”

“I will assist you.” Allura said. “Coran and I know more about the Castle than anyone else.”

“And… maybe you guys could get a video of all of us?” Hunk asked. “I want my family to know I’m okay.”

“Of course.” Pidge smiled. “We’ll do interviews with everybody and send them with my dad. I’m sure they’d love to hear from all of you.”

Shiro frowned and looked at Matt. Very few people knew about Shiro’s past on Earth, Matt, Keith, and Sam being the biggest ones to know it. Before he had come to space, before shit hit the fan, he had been madly in love with a man named Adam, a teacher at the Garrison. He was a few years older than Shiro but still close enough in age that the only complaints they got in school wasn’t because of their ages, but because they were gay. Even so long after the LGBTQ+ community was mostly accepted there were still those few who went out of their way to make Shiro and Adam super uncomfortable and hate themselves.

It had been had been hard enough on Adam that it often caused them to fight, but the argument that eventually made them break up was Shiro’s decision to go into space on the Kerberos mission. Looking back, part of him really wished he had stayed on Earth, but the rest of him was thankful that he had gone. After all, if what Allura had told them had been true, only the five of them would ever be able to drive the Lions. If he hadn’t gone into space Voltron would never have been formed, and the universe would have been destroyed many times over.

Would Adam even want to hear from him? He had no other family on Earth… but even then, if people saw his face perhaps they would be more willing to listen. After all, he had been considered dead, returned to Earth, went back into space and was now the leader of the universe's biggest defense.

“What about you, Keith? I know the rest of us will have people to send the messages to. Is there anybody you want to send a message to?” Hunk asked.

Keith blushed slightly. “Um, the only people I really… like from Earth are right here.” He said, looking away to hide his face. “So, no. Not really. But if you need me I’ll record something, I guess.”

“Good to hear.” Pidge smiled. “We’ll let you know if we need your help.” She promised.

 

Keith quickly ran around a corner, sweat dripping down his face and his neck as he ducked behind a pillar and pressed himself as hard against the wall as he possibly could. The group of people who had been following him for close to four blocks continued jogging in the direction that he had been going beforehand. He waited until they were completely out of sight before he let out a sigh of relief.

It had been two days since they had arrived on Olkarion, and unlike their last visit when people mostly avoided him and that one guy attacked him, the Olkari seemed more curious about him than ever before. He wanted to ask Ryner about it, but of course she was busy helping Allura, Coran, Pidge, Matt, and Sam get the information gathered for Sam’s trip back to Earth, so he couldn’t bother her, and whenever he looked for Krisella she was nowhere to be found. 

Was it because of the bump? Was it now that the bump was there they were suddenly becoming aggressive? But that didn’t make sense! His scent was supposed to be super dulled now, almost non-existent, and only species that were close to extinction would be trying to go after him, and considering how big the Olkari population was he seriously doubted that was the case here.

“Keith?” A voice said and Keith let out a rather feminine scream. He jumped back into the road, ready to fight or run off in the opposite direction but when he saw it was Shiro he relaxed and let the fur on his ears and tail drop. “Woah, Tiger, it’s just me.”

“Sorry, Shiro.” Keith said quickly, walking towards him.

“What’s gotten into you? Every time I see you you’re running around or hiding. Playing extreme hide-and-seek or something?” He teased with a chuckle.

“Not quite. A group of Olkari keep following me like a bunch of zombies. When I look at them they just look right back at me and don’t say anything, but when I walk away they just keep following me. Even into buildings! Hell, some almost followed me into the Castle last night.”

Shiro frowned. “That is strange. Any idea why?”

“If I did I’d be able to stop it, but I can’t.” Keith sighed. “I want to talk to Krisella and Ryner about it but they’ve been busy lately.”

“That’s true… everybody’s been pretty busy and will be for at least two more days. Which reminds me, Krolia is supposed to be meeting us here today.” Shiro reminded and Keith scrunched his nose slightly at the idea.

“Don’t remind me.”

“Don’t you want to see her?” Shiro asked as the two began walking along towards the forest.

“No… I mean… maybe? I’m not sure; I have some questions but at the same time I don’t know if I want the answer. I mean, she abandoned me all those years ago and while I know she did it to help the entire Galaxy, it still… the hell I went through all those years by myself… I just don’t know if I want to see her.”

“It might not be a bad idea, Keith. Talking to her could help you work through some of those abandonment issues…”

“I don’t have abandonment issues.” Keith argued, though part of him knew that wasn’t true. He just really didn’t want to be seen as weaker than he already seemed to be, considering his pregnancy.

“Sure you don’t.” Shiro smiled as they made their way into the forest, staying close to one another.

 

Keith couldn’t remember how long it had been since he had been able to walk around without the constant fear of things attacking him. Hell, the last time he fully remembered a tree had tried to get inside of him like some creepy cartoon porno or something. He still shuddered at the thought and the memories of those vines wrapping around him. All things considered he was lucky that Lance was the one who had gotten him pregnant and not some stranger or something that he never even thought could have a consciousness.

He wished he could walk around by himself, but at the same time he was thankful for the company. He didn’t know if they had ever caught the person who had jumped him the last time they were on Olkarion, but he didn’t want to risk it, so having Shiro around to watch his back was a nice change. At least for the moment.

Shiro and Keith used to be able to sit in silence for hours without feeling uncomfortable, but since the beginning of Keith’s pregnancy things had been much more awkward between the two of them. Keith didn’t know what to say to Shiro and visa versa. Too many things had been said, too many things had changed, and while they knew they needed to talk it out they couldn’t bring themselves to do it.

Keith gently tugged the sleeves of his jacket. It felt a bit uncomfortable having clothing rubbing his fur all the time, but he knew that he couldn’t just walk around naked or that really would cause more problems for everybody else. It was hard enough to protect him when he was clothed; if he walked around without clothes on many people would say he was ‘asking’ to be assaulted. He would walk around in his armor more because it was tight and didn’t mess up his fur but it made him really hot and uncomfortable in a different way altogether.

“Keith?”

Keith looked over at Shiro when he said his name. Keith smiled weakly. “Yeah?”

“I really am sorry that I said those things when we first found out you were pregnant. I lashed out at you when I shouldn’t have. On Earth only girls can have children and both teams are responsible for being safe when it came to sex, but with you it’s different. You’re not completely human and you and Lance being healthy you shouldn’t have had to worry about being safe or getting pregnant. Nobody knew that you were an Omega or that there were such a thing up here. I guess… when I first found out I was upset because I blamed you guys for not being careful, but in truth there was no reason to suspect you needed to be careful. If we had known I know you would have taken precautions.”

Keith nodded. “This is the last thing I thought would happen… there are still some days I struggle to accept that it’s all actually happening. Being an expectant parent at such a young age, if ever, and then the fact that Lance is the father and he’s still so young, I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t expect this to happen until long after we got back to Earth. But… you don’t have to worry.” Keith smiled. “I know you aren’t actually mad at me; you’re just worried about me and my future. You’ve always been that way, so don’t worry.”  
Shiro smiled, hugging him softly. “Good to hear. The last thing I want is for my best friend to be mad at me.”

Keith smiled slightly, a soft blush dusting his cheeks. “We should go back to the Castle soon… I have things I need to talk to Krolia about when she gets here.”

“Yeah, you do.”


	90. Questions

Krolia made it to Olkarion not long after Keith and Shiro arrived back at the Castle of Lions. With Shiro by his side people left him alone, which was nice but Keith could still feel people staring at him and wanting to get close to him. Luckily they didn’t, because Keith really didn’t want to have to take on or deal with any of them.

Keith sat on the couch, his hand on his stomach as he sighed. Krolia sat on one couch while Keith and Lance sat on the other. Shiro decided this was a more ‘private’ conversation that Keith, Krolia, and Lance should have together and that he didn’t need to be a part of it. Keith wished he didn’t have to be a part of it either, but considering that he was the one who was pregnant he really had no choice.

“So… you have questions about your pregnancy?” Krolia asked and Keith nodded slowly.

“Yeah… a little. Um, I’m an only child, right?” Keith asked.

“Yes, at least from my side. If your father had another kid after I left…”

Keith shook his head. “He didn’t.”

“But isn’t that weird?” Lance asked. “We were told that it was rare for Galra to have just one kid.”

“While it is a bit more uncommon to have only one young, it all depends on the species that the Galra was bred with.” Krolia explained. “For example, if you were to have mated with an Olkari you would likely have around four very small young; if you had it with another Galra you would have two or three bigger young. But with a human who typically only has one young at once, it’s more than likely to only have one.”

“Did… did you have any… complications?” Keith asked.

“Complications? Um… not that I can think of. You were quite a few weeks early, which made you smaller than either of us wanted, but you were healthy in the end.”

“Did you ever figure out why he was early?” Lance asked.

“Austin always thought that it was because eventually our DNA clashed in a way that my body tried to reject you, but in the end I ended up giving birth to you instead. I doubt anything like that will happen to you though, considering that you’re half-human and Lance is a full human.”

Keith and Lance nodded slightly.

“Did I look human when I was born?”

Krolia shook her head, making Keith’s stomach curl up nervously. “Not at all; in fact he looks more like he did when he was born, though he turned the same shade as his father not long after he was born. But again, I doubt that will happen considering the baby is going to be only a quarter Galra.”

“Okay, I have another question.” Keith said. “Why would the Olkari be following me around all the time? Does that have to do with the pregnancy? ‘Cause it’s pissing me off.” He asked.

“What?” Lance frowned at the idea of that. Why hadn’t he heard about that?

Keith shook his head, telling him that it wasn’t important and then looked to Krolia for the answer.

“Well… species like the Olkari and many other alien races can sense pregnancy in others. For example the Olkari are able to sense the cosmic dust forming inside of you, like many current and future species that you may come across. It’s not because there is anything wrong with you; you’re just likely the nicest Galra they’ve met. So it’s just a curiosity they have about your pregnancy, the same curiosity that you’re having about yourself as well.” Krolia explained.

“Oh, that makes sense.” Lance said. “So I think that’s all th-” 

Keith played with his hands nervously. “What you said about me… the last time I saw you. About having harder times activating things not connected to my Galra side… what did you mean?” He said.

“Oh, that?” Krolia frowned and Lance looked between them, slightly confused. “Well, the farther along in your pregnancy you get the closer you’re going to get to your Galra heritage, and eventually you’ll have a harder time controlling things that your human side could easily activate. For example last time I saw you, you said that you were having a hard time activating your Marmora Blade. Well, the deeper into your pregnancy that you get the easier that you’ll be able to activate the blade, but you’ll have a harder time activating your Paladin Bayard.”

“What about the Voltron Lions?” Lance asked.

Krolia shrugged. “I don’t know enough about the Lions or Voltron to tell you. Though it would be dangerous if that was the case, so just be careful. Because if you can’t drive the Lions it might cause things to fall into chaos. Tell me, are you the only one who can drive two Lions?”

“No, um, Lance has driven the Red Lion once but we’ve never really tried to form Voltron with him driving her, and if he drove Red there would be nobody to drive the Blue Lion.”

“I see… well, keep an eye on that, Keith, and perhaps letting the rest of your team know about this in case there is some future problems would be a good idea.”

“A… yeah. I’ll think about it. So far we haven’t had any problems so there’s no reason to bother them if there hasn’t been any problems.” Keith said and Lance frowned.

“Okay.” Krolia nodded. “I understand.”

Lance shook his head. “We shouldn’t just keep this a secret from everybody.” Lance said softly. “What if something does happen when we’re in the middle of a fight or something?”

“We won’t let it happen.” Keith said. “Everything is fine, Lance. Don’t worry so much. I’ll talk to Red and see if she’s having any issues with me. If so, then I”ll tell the team.”

Krolia smiled reassuringly at Lance, trying to keep him calm, but Lance knew Keith better than most; aside from Shiro, of course. Lance knew that Keith wouldn’t say anything if something was wrong; he would keep his mouth shut and wouldn’t even worry Lance until shit hit the fan and they were in a desperate situation. There wasn’t much they could do, but still Lance hoped this time would be different. Something had to give eventually, right?

Wrong.

 

The next day they were packing up to leave yet again. They would be flying far enough out of the atmosphere that they were able to wormhole Sam back into Earth’s solar system, and while everybody was desperate to go with him there wasn’t much that could be done. Pidge, Matt, Hunk and Lance recorded messages to take back to Earth with him to show their parents when he saw them or got the chance, but other than that there was nothing else they could do. The Olkari, like they did every time they were on their planet, supplied the Castle with more food than necessary so they first had to get everything loaded up, which gave Keith one last time to talk to Krisella and Ryner.

“So, we’ll see you in a few weeks.” Ryner smiled softly.

“Yeah… I can’t believe it’s almost my tenth week. We’re already halfway through.”

“With just the pregnancy, then you have another eighteen years raising them.” Krisella reminded, making Keith groan inwardly. How much of a pain was that going to be? If the baby was anything like either of his fathers he would be a stubborn, reckless mess or a womanizer who had so many puns and past and future lovers that they wouldn’t be able to keep track of them all.

“Yeah, great.” Keith mumbled softly, then looked at Krolia as she walked over. “Krolia? What’s wrong?”

“I will be staying here for a while, at least until you guys land again. I would like to gather whatever information they have on Prince Lotor and compare it with the knowledge we have about him. Hopefully we’ll be able to prevent him from doing a big attack on any planets.”

Keith frowned. He had asked all the questions he had thought about at the time but he still didn’t feel right leaving her behind. What if he needed her? What if something happened and she needed him? What if-

Wait. What was he thinking? He barely knew her and already it was like he was dependant on whatever she had to say. Was it because he finally had a parent in his life that he was desperate not to let them go again? That was stupid. He hadn’t needed a parent when he was younger; why did he suddenly need one now?

“Yeah, sounds good.” Keith said. “Trips in the Castle are pretty boring anyway. We just fly around until something comes to kill us or we get a distress signal.” Keith shrugged lightly. “So if you find out anything just let us know.”

Krolia nodded. “I will. Be careful, Keith.”

“Yeah. I will.” Keith nodded with a soft shrug.

How were they supposed to say goodbye? Did they hug? Shake hands? Wave? What was the right way to say goodbye to a woman you hardly knew but was the mother you had never gotten the chance to meet?

“Anyways, see ya.” He waved, and Krolia waved back just as awkwardly as the two then went their separate ways.

-Are things always going to be this awkward between us?- Keith thought with a soft sigh as he walked into the castle.

They took off not long after that, leaving the atmosphere and heading deeper and deeper into space until the only thing they could see of Olkari was the white spot that it left in the sky, almost being drowned out by the billions of other stars that took up the sky.

“This looks like a good place.” Coran said, looking back at Sam, Matt, and Pidge.

They were hugging again, clearly not wanting to say goodbye to each other. It was like every time they turned around they were hugging again. Keith didn’t understand it but maybe that was just one of the countless things that was wrong with him?

Keith sighed, getting out of his seat as he made his way off of the bridge. He then went down the elevators to Red’s hanger. He couldn’t handle all the affection in the room. He knew there would be tears, both from Pidge, and Matt, and probably Sam too. He didn’t doubt that Lance and Hunk would be upset after saying goodbye, knowing that he was going to home and not them. Not yet. They tried to keep it a secret but it was obvious that they wanted to go home. They missed their families, their friends, everything and everybody they had left on Earth. Keith didn’t miss most of it. The only thing he missed from Earth on a daily basis was the Arizona sunsets and hearing about cryptids. Though now that he himself would be considered a cryptid he didn’t have to look very far to get his paranormal kick when he was in the mood for it.

He walked into Red’s hanger and smiled at her, walking over, though it seemed to take her a long moment for her to respond to him.

-Oh! Keith! I’m sorry… I was sleeping.- She crouched down in front of him. -Is something the matter?-

Keith shook his head. “No, I just decided to give you an update about the baby.”

She let out a purr that was loud enough that it rumbled the floor under his feet. -What about them? Are they healthy? Are they here? No, they can’t be here yet; it’s too soon. What is it?-

Keith smiled. “I’m having a boy, Red.”

-A boy? Oh. My. Gosh! Blue! Rose! Did you guys hear that! It’s a boy! It’s a boy!- She got up and bounced up and down happily. -IT’S A BOY!-

Keith let out a chuckle. “Sorry to make you lose your bet.” He said.

-Who cares about the stupid bet?! Oh my quiznak! It’s a little baby boy! What are you going to name them?-

“Either Atlas or Apollo.”

-Hm… I vote Apollo personally.-

Blue let out a loud roar and Red let out a growl.

-Shut up, Blue! What do you know?!-

There was another growl from Blue followed by Red shouting. “Y-yeah! But your Paladin isn’t your baby, so…-

Blue let out a grumble, and getting the feeling that things were getting a bit too heated Keith decided to break it up before it got more out of hand. The last thing any of them needed was two of the Lions arguing over something he did.

Keith smiled. “That’s enough, you guys. We’re going to have the entire team vote soon; don’t worry. But… that’s the update I have for you.” Keith went to walk away but a paw blocked his path.

-Something is bothering you.- Red said. -What is it?-

“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing. Just… worried about some things my mom said.”

-Like what?-

“Um… do I… seem different to you?” Keith asked. “Like smell or aura? However it is you guys sense us?”

Red seemed to tense at the idea. -No, you’re still you, Keith. I can tell you apart from anybody in the known universes.-

“So… you won’t forget me?”

-I could never forget you, my little cub.- She promised. -Now go and rest. You look exhausted.-

Keith nodded slowly, then turned and walked out of the room, the door closing with a loud hiss behind him. He leaned against the wall, letting out a sigh as he leaned his head back against the cold metal. He wanted to believe Red but part of him was suspicious. The way she had acted when he walked in and how tense she had gotten when he asked her about his scent and aura. Was she lying? Were they capable of lying? Was he just being too paranoid?


	91. Call of The Mermaid

“Why did you lie to your paladin, Red?” Yellow asked over the wavelength all the Lions shared with one another. “Being honest with one another is one of the most important parts of being part of Voltron.”

“You guys should have seen his face.” Red sighed. “He looked so sad and upset by the idea that I could forget him that I simply couldn’t tell him the truth…”

“What is the truth, Red?” Coal asked.

“I’m forgetting him. Normally, looking at him I know who he is, but lately even that’s becoming more and more difficult. Hell, today I didn’t even recognize him until he started trying to talk to me.” Red sighed with a heavy heart. “I don’t know what to do; if I panic too much and eject him I’ll never forgive myself.”

“You should tell him.” Rose said. “If something bad happens like that then at least he’ll understand why you did what you did.”

“I’ll think about it… for now though I just want to celebrate the fact that there’s a little baby boy growing inside my Paladin. New life is beautiful, isn’t it?” Red smiled.

 

Keith had been right when he had guessed that everybody was going to cry when Sam left. That was an understatement to say the least. Hunk was a mess, cooking to distract himself from sobbing. Lance was curled up on the couch, sobbing into a pillow while wearing his blue bathrobe and slippers to try and keep himself as comfortable as possible. Pidge and Matt sat together sobbing and telling each other stories of their past to try and keep themselves from breaking down themselves. Shiro looked a bit depressed too, though Keith could only guess that was because of the fact that Matt was so depressed and that there was nothing he could do to help. Allura and Coran also seemed to be at a loss for what to do in this situation so instead they all just sat in the main room waiting for Hunk to finish cooking.

Keith eventually was the one who broke the silence. “So what name do you guys like more, Atlas or Apollo?” He asked and caught everybody's attention.

“Atlas sounds kinda cool.” Shiro said.

“Yeah, sounds like a tough name.” Matt agreed.

“I don’t know; Apollo is the God of the Sun.” Pidge said, rubbing her nose with a sniffle. “Which is good if you want a space name.”

“But Atlas carried the world and heavens on his shoulders.” Matt countered.

“That’s true…” Lance said, sitting up. “They’re both strong, god-like names…”

“We could have a vote.” Allura suggested. “All for Atlas, raise your hands.”

Matt, Shiro, and Coran raised their hands.

“All for Apollo, raise your hands.”

Allura and Pidge raised their hands.

“Then Atlas it is.” Lance smiled and then looked at Keith. “And we can always change what they’re called the closer you get to giving birth.” He said, rubbing Keith’s back.

“Sounds like a good plan. I honestly like both of the names so I guess we’ll just have to figure out when he’s born to find out which name fits the best for him.”

The room fell quiet again and Keith rubbed his arm. Now what could he talk to them about? He was never really good at socializing and now he was trying to start the conversations? This felt like it was becoming more and more impossible by the second. Thankfully Hunk walked into the rom not much longer after the conversation ended with a big tray of food in his arms.

“I hope you guys are hungry.” He said. “I kinda made a lot.”

“I’m starving.” Keith admitted, not that it was a surprise to anybody around him.

 

It was early the next morning as they were floating through space that the alarms began to echo through the ship. Keith knew the rest of the ship was likely up and moving but Keith just curled up around Lance, their legs wrapped around one another, his arms snaked around Lance’s stomach as he tried to block out the loud noises by pressing his ears against his head but it wasn’t working.

“Come on, Keith; it’s probably an emergency. You know, hence the emergency alarms?” Lance mumbled but it was obvious that it was more based on the fact that he needed to pee than anything else.

“I don’t want to.” Keith said groggily.

“But… you’re always the best at getting up in the morning? What’s wrong?”

“I have a bad feeling.” Keith admitted. “I don’t want to get out of bed… I know that if I do something bad is going to happen.”

Lance frowned. “Keith, nothing bad is going to happen. I’ll protect you.”

Keith looked up at him, his hair falling in his face. “Promise?”

“I promise. Now let’s get out of bed before they come looking for us.”

Keith groaned and sat up. “Fine.” He sighed.

The planet they were receiving the distress signal from was one that Lance and Hunk knew very well, and while they didn’t know the name of said planet they knew what to expect.

“That’s Plaxum’s planet!” Lance said quickly, pointing to the massive screen.

“You don’t think that the Baku survived, do you?” Hunk asked.

“I don’t know but we have to go.” Lance stated.

“Woah, woah; everybody calm down.” Shiro said. “We’re going to go, but before we get there how about you guys explain how you guys know this planet so well?” He suggested.

“Well, it was after we all got split up in the wormhole when you and Keith ended up on that super dangerous planet and Keith drove the Black Lion for the first time. Hunk and I got stranded on this planet.” Lance began to explain, and the more he explained the more interested everybody got but it was obvious that by the end Keith was more than a little frustrated with it all. Having heard about how fond of this ‘Plaxum’ girl he got was enough to make him more than a little jealous.

“So the Baku controls people's minds and then fed on the merpeople as it pleased?” Matt frowned. “That sounds… terrible.”

“It was; if it hadn’t been for Plaxum and her friends Hunk and I would probably be Baku food. So… we kind of owe them.”

“Of course we’ll go; they’re a race in distress. Helping them is our responsibility as the Paladins of Voltron.” Allura said. “Now, let’s come up with a plan.”

“Agreed. Unfortunately, without a solid place to land the Castle of Lions cannot get too close to it.” Coran explained. “Not to mention many of the Lions such as Red and Black do not do well in the water.” He laughed. “In fact, Black sinks like a rock and Red, well… Red just shuts down.”

Keith frowned. He did NOT like the idea of that.

“Yellow doesn’t do so well in the water either.” Hunk admitted. “He gets really heavy and clumsy.”

“Blue does great in the water. He moves better in the water than he does in the air.” Lance explained.

“I don’t think that Rose will do too bad in the water.” Pidge offered.

“Alright, then we’ll split up and take the Blue and Green Lions onto the planet. Coran will stay up in the Castle with Matt in case something happens. The rest of us will go down to the planet and see what’s going on.” Allura said. “If we need back up we’ll just have to deal with it.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” Matt said, then smiled at Shiro. “Hopefully the Paladins don’t take after their Lions.” He teased, but it honestly seemed to bother Keith more than anybody else.

“Then that’s our plan.” Shiro said.


	92. The Monarch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, so I'm about to go on a break, I think I mentioned this a few chapters ago but if not here we go. I'm leaving Friday morning to go on a vacation for a week. I'm going up to visit my Fiance's sister who is expecting a baby (yasss babies!!!) we're going to find out the gender and then enjoy her company. We'll be going to the Zoo, an Aquarium, and a Dinosaur Exhibit (two of my favorite things Baby's and Dinosaurs, I'm so damn excited). Anyways, I'm hoping to leave you guys one more chapter after this one before I leave though I don't think you guys will like me either way. *Evil chuckle* just remember I love you all!
> 
> Any who, things are going along okay so far, I set up a GoFundMe for my Fiance to get the Female-to-Male chest operation. So if you guys are interested in me posting the link to that let me know in the comments, but it's not like I'm demanding money to post out chapters. I love writing this story and I'll be posting as many chapters as I can before the next writers block hits and makes me stop for a while.
> 
> Alright, I'll let you get to the story now. I'm sure you guys are all antsy to see what's going on!

The planet was beautiful and reminded Keith a lot of a giant snowflake, though according to Lance a big portion of the planet had already started melting, but ninety percent of the planet was still encased in the large ring of ice.

“Are you sure you can’t land on the ice?” Hunk suggested to Coran. “It looked really thick.”

“I’m afraid the risk for that exceeds the possible reward.” Coran said, shaking his head. “Don’t worry; we’ll be up here waiting to find out what’s going on.” He said, then gently patted Hunk’s shoulder.

“That looks really cold.” Pidge grumbled. “What do we do if our Lions freeze up?”

“The water’s not that cold.” Lance explained. “We’ll be able to swim without any problem and the Lions won’t freeze up.”

“Red would.” Coran reminded. “Which is why you’re not taking her.”

“And on that note, we should go.” Allura chuckled softly. “Let’s go to the Lions and head to the planet.”

Keith and Allura rode with Lance while Shiro and Hunk crawled in the Green Lion with Pidge. They then exited the Castle and flew towards the planet. The closer they got the more they began to get clued in on what was going on. The ice on the outside of the surface had scorch marks on it, as though it had been attacked again and again by some outside force.

“That doesn’t look good.” Pidge commented.

“No…” Shiro said with a deep frown. “It doesn’t.”

“Let’s find out what’s going on.”

They flew through the part of the planet that was already mostly melted, then made their way towards the city, following Lance’s lead. As they got closer, they soon found themselves surrounded by the Mermaids of the planet.

“They’re beautiful.” Allura said as the Lions were parked. “I’ve never seen anything like them before.”

“You guys weren’t kidding when you said it’s beautiful here.” Shiro said quietly.

Once they were fully armored up they left the Lions, using their suits to protect them from the cold and the helmet on to help them breathe under the water. They only swam a few meters from the Lions before three very excited Mermaids swam over, one instantly kissing Lance on the side of the helmet.

“Lance! You have returned!” She said happily.

“Plaxum and… you guys!” Lance said, clearly not remembering the names of the other two. “We got your distress signal; what happened?”

Keith crossed his arms in frustration, sucking in a breath as he tried not to let the jealousy consume him. Shiro smiled sympathetically and gave his back a gentle pat.

“That is not for us to discuss.” Said the one that Hunk quickly reminded Lance was named Swirm. “Follow us to our Queen; she will tell you all that has been occuring.”

They followed the three mermaids through the streets of a city Keith could only explains as Atlantis. It looked exactly as he would have imagined it had he seen it on Earth. It was beautiful and full of lights, and just like the aliens on Olkari the aliens seemed to be very curious about Keith and whatever he was doing. He felt like a mouse that was completely surrounded by hawks. Keith tried to stay focused on the people that he was familiar with, and while he had started out holding Lance’s hand he had slid further and further away to the point where Hunk and Lance were way in the front while Keith was slowly falling behind. He was even falling behind Shiro, Pidge, and Allura. He could feel himself getting forgotten and abandoned as he struggled to keep up.

Thankfully it wasn’t too long of a swim to the castle, where they were met by a mermaid that seemed much bigger than the rest, and considering that she was surrounded by mermen in suits of armor they all quickly figured out she was the Queen they had been talking about. They stopped and bowed gently, though Keith’s was much more clumsy than the rest. He felt like a fish out of water when he was in water. He was so slow and clumsy.

“Our saviors have returned, and with help! Thank the seas!” She said with a gentle smile. “I am Queen Luxia; welcome to our home.”

“Thank you, your Majesty.” Allura smiled. “I am Princess Allura of Altea. This is Shiro, Pidge, Keith, and you have already met Lance and Hunk.”

“Oh, another royal!” Said Plaxum.

“This is a rare occasion indeed! We have not had royal company here for many years. Before we burden you all with our troubles, please join us all for a feast.”

“We’re going to get so fat at this rate.” Pidge chuckled lightly.

“We would not like to impose on you-” Allura began.

“It’s no problem. Dinner comes with a show, as the Blue and Yellow paladin well know. So please… join us.”

“Well… if you insist.” Allura smiled.

“Good, but first.” She swam to each of them, putting a helmet of air around their heads. At first most of the group didn’t know what to do until Hunk and Lance took off their helmets and scared the crap out of everybody until they smiled at everybody.

“Don’t worry.” Hunk said. “It’s so we can breathe, and they don’t pop so we can even eat through them and push them and we’ll be fine.” He explained, by cupping the sides of the bubble and pushing on them.

One by one the rest of the group followed their example with Keith being the last one to take off his helmet, and embarrassingly enough he continued to hold his breath for a few seconds because he was afraid that his bubble would pop or fill up with water. When that didn’t happen he relaxed. Once they were ready they followed Princess Luxia through many halls of the palace to a large sitting room.

“Please, have a seat!” Queen Luxia smiled.

“Thank you.” Allura smiled and they all sat down.

“So what happened?” Hunk asked. “Is it the Baku?”

“No no, thankfully since your last visit the Baku has not been seen… however, in these most recent days a Galra ship has been seen attacking the surface. Luckily where the ice has melted is too small and their fighters don’t seem accustomed to our water-based planet, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been trying. I fear that if they do manage to break the ice or form some sort of weapon capable of coming into the water that my people could be at risk.”

“The Galra… so they’re still up to their old tricks after all this time. We’ll help you with whatever we can.” Shiro said.

Queen Luxia smiled softly, then looked up as servants began to lay food down on the table. As Keith expected they were mostly fish and seafood-based, but as hungry as Keith was he didn’t want to turn it away.

“Thank you, Shiro. Though let’s not focus purely on the bad today. I would like to speak with you about something.”

“Is it about Keith’s pregnancy?” Allura guessed and Luxia turned her head in confusion.

“His what?”

Keith flinched. “N-nothing.” He said.

“Do you not have a Monarch who carries your young?” Swrin asked.

“A monarch? Like the butterfly?” Hunk asked.

“What is a butterfly?” Asked Plaxum and Hunk chuckled.

“A Monarch in this case is like a leader. A Queen, for instance.” Allura explained.

“Though a Monarch is also a female who is the only one of her kind to give birth to young while the rest are sterile.” Pidge said. “And, y’know, it’s a butterfly too. But I think she means like how a Queen Bee lays all the eggs. Right, Your Highness?”

“Indeed. In this case I am the only one here who can give birth to the eggs that grow into the younger mermaids you see around here. The eggs I lay are taken to the nursery, where I have specific Mers take care of them while I’m busy with my more royal duties.” Queen Luxia explained with a smile and Keith felt himself quickly losing his appetite, and he wasn’t the only one. Allura too seemed grossed out.

“Like bees and ants on Earth.” Shiro said and Pidge nodded with a smile.

“That’s so cool!” Lance said.

“If that’s not the case for you, though… then this is indeed a very special visit.” Luxia said and Keith could feel people slowly surrounded by Mermaids who were incredibly curious about him. 

“We have never met somebody who grows the young inside of them. When you expel them will it be in an egg?” Blumfump asked.

“No.” Keith moved away as they got uncomfortably close to his face. “When we give birth it’s to a baby… there’s no egg.”

“There is at the very beginning.” Pidge tried to explain, but it was clear they were just getting more and more confused.

“Intriguing! When you feed them do you feed them part of the casing that they arrive in? What do they eat? Do they eat?” Swirn asked.

“T-they, um… they eat… I mean… they drink milk.”

“What is milk?” Blumfump asked.

“Where does milk come from? Jellyfish?”

Keith was getting confused and dizzy by all the questions. He was starting to feel lightheaded. “Um… I… excuse me.” He said, quickly getting up and swimming away. It was slower than he wanted and much more clumsy than he had wanted but it was the best he could do considering how disoriented he was.

Keith didn’t stop until he was far enough away that he felt like he was alone. He pressed his hand on a rock, breathing hard. He felt like he was suffocating and he wanted nothing more than to take off the bubble helmet. He felt trapped.

-Don’t throw up- Keith thought to himself. -Don’t throw up in the bubble. It’ll only be worse if you do that-

He tried to sit but ended up just floating up as he curled up in a ball around himself. He closed his eyes, trying to keep himself steady as he did it. He tried to steady his breath and keep himself calm. He was stuck in the bubble no matter how much he didn’t want to be. If he took it off he would drown which was NOT a way he wanted to go. Keith leaned his head back, his breathing finally beginning to calm down when a hand grabbed his shoulder and he let out a more feminine scream than he meant to.

He jumped, which of course made him flip upside down so that his head was towards the ground and he was face-to-face with Shiro. Shiro was clearly trying not to laugh but the smile was obvious on his face despite how much he was trying not to let it show.

“You okay?” Shiro asked, clearing his throat. “Those questions got a bit personal in there.”

“Yeah, a bit too personal.” He mumbled, reaching out to Shiro, who took his arms and helped him straighten out and put his feet safely on the ground.

“You’re… kinda clumsy in the water.” Shiro noted and Keith let out a snort.

“Yeah; thanks, Captain Obvious. The tail keeps my balance on land but underwater… I can’t control it as easily so I flip around like a pancake, and when I use the jet pack it just makes me flip faster.”

Shiro once again tried not to laugh. “How’s the little guy handling all of this?”

“I think he’s asleep, or he doesn’t know the difference. Either way I’m glad he’s holding still; I don’t need the extra nausea right now.”

Shiro nodded. “Yeah… you’re looking really pale. If you need to go back to the Lions and take a break, you can. We might go back to the castle and watch the entire planet for potential attacks. We can’t communicate with the Castle this far underwater so we could use the extra warning that being up there brings.”

“Makes sense… Okay, then I’m going to go to Blue. Hopefully he’ll let me in without Lance being around.”

“Alright. Do you want me to go with you?” Shiro asked.

Keith shook his head. “No, it’s okay. Go enjoy your meal. By the time you’re done I’ll probably just be making it to the Lion anyways.” He laughed lightly.

“Be safe, Keith.” Shiro said and Keith nodded.

“Of course. When have I not been careful?”

The two looked at each other for a long moment, Shiro raising an eyebrow before Keith looked away.

“Don’t answer that.” Keith said and Shiro chuckled lightly.

Shiro swam back into the castle, and after a moment Keith began swimming in the direction of the Lions. As he was swimming along he could sense that he was being followed. He tried to remember what Krolia said about many other alien species getting curious about his pregnancy, and after the fiasco that was the meeting he had just sat through he had a feeling that this species would be especially curious. Only one person carrying eggs and then the rest just watching them until they hatched while people like Keith carried babies until they were full grown inside of him and then gave birth to a living creature…

He could understand why they would be curious about it all.

He looked around and could see many mermaids, most looking in his direction but none attempting to swim towards him, only making him feel more uncomfortable. He shook it off and then continued to make his way towards the Lion. He had just reached Blue when he felt a strong vibration in the water and heard a rumble. He looked up towards the surface. It was hard to see the top but there was an unmistakable light that would flash followed by the same thump again almost a full minute later. Keith’s eyes widened at the realization and he touched Blue’s mouth, making sure that he didn’t end up getting knocked away or end up floating away.

The planet was under attack.


	93. Missing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *throws chapter at readers then runs away*
> 
> SEE YOU GUYS IN A WEEK!!!

It didn’t take long for the rest of the group to catch up with him and get into the Lions, but it was clear the moment they started making their way back up towards the surface that there was a problem. If they went out the way they came then they had a big chance of being spotted and attacked, but trying to cut through the ice and escape on through a new hole could put the city in danger. The entrance was far enough that the city was out of harm's reach but if they got too close, the Ion Cannon from the Galra ship could quite possibly reach the ocean floor and hit the city dead on or even nearby enough to cause some serious damage to it or the area around it.

“What do we do, Allura?” Shiro asked.

Allura frowned. “Hold on a moment.” She said and the Lions stopped floating, staying just out of sight of the Galra ship and out of sight from the city. “Hunk, Shiro, Keith and I will go with Pidge through the hole and to the Castle, but… Lance, we will need you to provide cover on the planet’s surface.”

“Can do, Princess.” Lance nodded, then looked at Keith. “I’ll get Blue closer so it’s easier for everybody to make it over there.” He said, slowly moving Blue closer to the Green Lion.

“Be safe.” Keith said to Lance, kissing the top of his helmet before he followed Allura out of the cockpit and made their way out the mouth of the Blue Lion.

Allura took hold of Keith’s wrist and helped him swim quickly over to the Green Lion and in through its mouth. Keith then watched helplessly as the Blue Lion shot up quickly towards the surface. Keith’s bad feeling refused to go away; it only seemed to be getting worse by the second. He had to make sure that nothing happened to Lance. But he couldn’t do that without Red.

“Ready when you are.” Keith said over the communicators as the Green Lion’s mouth closed and they shot up after the Blue Lion.

They moved slower once they got to the top, waiting until Lance shot out first, flying towards the Galra ship and distracting them by firing the Blue Lion’s laser at them. It didn’t take more than a few seconds for them to turn their full attention to the Lion and away from the planet’s surface. Once they were all sure that was the case Pidge drove them though the same exit and drove as quickly as she could towards the Castle Of Lions.

It didn’t take long for them to reach the Castle, and thankfully there wasn’t any trouble from the Galra ship. Shiro, Keith, Hunk and Allura quickly climbed out of the Green Lion which Pidge then drove back out into space, not hesitating for a moment to go to Lance’s side and try to give him some sort of back up.

“Go to your Lions.” Allura said. “I will go to the Bridge and see what we can do from up here!”

They nodded and quickly ran off towards their individual Lions. It wasn’t long before Keith could hear Hunk and Shiro take off in their Lions but as soon as Keith got to Red he realized a problem. Red wasn’t responding to him, not even when Keith began to wave his hand in front of Red.

“Red! Red, wake up! We have an emergency! You need to wake up!”

Red’s eyes lit up and there was a growl. -Keith? What’s wrong?- She asked, but it was a very long moment before she did so.

Keith frowned; he was now sure. He was beginning to affect Red; she was having a harder and harder time recognizing him as time went along. “A Galra ship is attacking. We have to go help the others.”

-Right. Alright, let’s go.- Red opened her mouth so that Keith could quickly run in. He climbed into his seat, getting comfortable for a moment before he let out a heavy breath.

Red took off running before shooting off into the air, flying through space in the direction of the fight. The ride was incredibly quiet and awkward, not even passing the occasional words that they normally did. They were both too focused on what was going on, and worried about what to do next. There were Galra fighters in every which direction, leaving it up to Lance and Shiro to attack the main ship while Pidge, Hunk and himself did whatever they could to try and take care of the fighters.

Taking down most of the fighters were no problem as they flew around shooting them out of the air, crushing them in the massive jaws of the Lions; hell, even just slamming into them ever so slightly was enough to make many of them combust on themselves. It looked like it was going to be a quick fight until Red’s jaws got jammed after biting into one of the fighters. It was stuck that way, and two fighter pilots climbed out and were now inside of Red.

Keith frowned, getting up from his feet then frowning when he saw one of the fighters pull something out. It was a silver ball with blue details around it. It was clearly of Galra origin but it was also colored in a way that he didn’t recognize. The Galra weren’t known for their pastel and bright designs. He didn’t have long to think about it before the Galra soldiers threw the ball into Red’s throat in the direction that Keith was sitting.

Keith gasped, holding on tightly to the handles as the ball exploded. They were still flying at full speed but the explosion seemed to stop Red dead in her tracks. She flipped head over heels as Keith hit his head on the seat, dazing him. Red was completely powered down, as though her entire energy source had been sapped out of her at once. He shook his head, trying to clear the blurs that had formed around his vision as he got to his feet and made his way slowly towards the people who had invaded his Lion. He was on his own, the static in his ears only proved that whatever they had used was some kind of EMP that affected not just his armor and communications but was also strong enough to shut Red down completely.

Luckily he didn’t need power to use his bayard, which he did his best to activate but failed to do so. Finally deciding that it was useless to keep trying he pulled out his Marmoran Blade and was surprised to find that it almost instantly activated. He didn’t want to question it as he rushed towards down the path towards Red’s mouth, sliding to a stop when his eyes instantly landed on one of the fighters.

“Where’s your friend?” Keith asked, steadying himself.

He didn’t answer, not that Keith was honestly expecting a reply from him. Keith growled, running at him, sliding and dodging out of the way as the attacker began to shoot at him. Though that didn’t last long once Keith threw the blade into the barrel of the gun. It caused the weapon to recoil and the front of it to explode, causing the man to stumble backwards. Keith was too distracted by this and the first man that he didn’t notice the second man sneaking up behind him until it was too late. Suddenly his helmet was yanked off of his head and by the time Keith had managed to turn around to see what was going on he got the butt of the gun smacking him in the side of the head.

Keith let out a weak cry as he fell to his knees, holding his head as his ears rang. He was shaking in pain and was too busy seeing double to try and stop the second man from once again attacking him; this time he injected him in the side of the neck with a sharp needle. Keith tried to shove him away but once again failed as the first man shackled Keith’s wrists in front of him and put his helmet back on his head.

“We’re going to go for a little ride, Red Paladin.” The second said with a giggle as Keith whimpered and fell exhausted to his side.

He was so tired; all he wanted was a rescue, but judging by the sounds of the fight carrying on outside of the Red Lion, Keith knew a rescue wasn’t coming. At least not before he passed out.

 

“Guys!” Hunk reported over the communicators. “Something is going on with Keith’s Lion!” He said as he watched a handful of Galra fighters circle it. It seemed as though the last of the fighters had gathered around the Red Lion. 

“Keith?” Shiro said, clearly trying to get his attention. “Keith, can you read me? Keith, what’s going on?”

There was no reply from Keith, and judging by the fact that Red didn’t have any of her normal lights on they all quickly began to suspect the worst. Having defeated the Galra ship they didn’t worry much about the fighters as they rushed over, shooting only one or two down after they fired first, but for the most part they flew away like a bunch of startled birds. When they got close they could see part of the problem.

The Red Lion had part of a Galra fighter stuck in its jaws. On top of that the emergency hatch on top of Red’s head had been opened, as though somebody had made a mistake.

“I’m going in.” Lance said, and before anybody could argue he flew out of Blue and went towards the Red Lion. He went through the top hatch and started looking around.

Red was completely dark on the inside without any sign that she had any power left. The first place Lance went inside was to the driver’s platform, which was empty. Lance, following what he knew Keith would do next, made his way towards Red’s mouth and instantly felt sick to his stomach. His Marmora blade was on the ground, as well as an empty needle of some sort. There was signs of an explosion; some of the scorch marks were clearly from an exploded gun while the other marks which had been near the entrance of the mouth showed a sign of a bigger explosion, likely what killed Red’s power.

“Guys.” Lance said, the sound of fear and anger thick in his voice. “He’s not here.”

“What do you mean he’s not there?” Pidge asked. “Where would he go?”

“I don’t know. But… Keith isn’t here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, now... little bit of an update but not about this story. If you didn't read the last chapter then go back and read that little note and it'll explain what's going on. But, this is about another story I'm going to start.
> 
> This one will NOT be Voltron, though I am still planning on writing another Voltron story. Probably not a second part to this story but that could possibly come in the future. The story I'm going to start is an Adventure's of Tintin story. So if you see me posting another story don't panic, I am still working on this one. I'm working on this Tintin story for a few reasons.
> 
> 1) It's going to cover a situation close to me and my Fiance/editor. It'll have a Transgender character, which my fiance is Gender-Fluid. I want to try and cover this in a bit more detailed of a story. And while at first the Tintin story will have a big mention of that then die down for a while it'll eventually become a major part of the story again later on.
> 
> 2) I've been wanting to use an OC of mine as a main character in a story for a long time, and while Lance and Keith's child is technically an OC they're going to be a baby unless I do more chapters later on as they grow. (Which I will very likely do but, still)
> 
> and 3) I don't know if you guys have realized via Tumblr or any other social media but a big portion of the Voltron Fandom is toxic and vicious towards multi-shippers such as myself. I could use a break from a fandom just for a little while and work on another story (with an equally toxic fandom, I can never escape. Save me.)
> 
> Again, I am still working on this story and I will probably have the next chapter up by uh... let's say the 1st of October. That'll give us time to rest, write, edit, and post. So, don't worry you'll have another cliff hanger to look forward to in about two weeks. *evil laughter*
> 
> So, if you want to read the Tintin story keep your eyes out for it, but if not that's fine too! I love this story and it's still got quite a bit more chapters to go.


	94. Update!!! Level 9000!

Ignore the DBZ reference, I've never actually seen that show and I don't know what it means but I needed a title for this.

Anyways, decided to give an update because I haven't in a while. For those who are worried I'm safe and everything just going through some things. Mostly though it's the return of Writers Block, and of course with NaNoWriMo coming up I'm putting all my efforts into trying to get some of that out. I'm working on an original horror story that I tried to write a few years ago but now makin' it even more spooky.

But I'm okay, in fact I have instructions for people I trust to post an update here if I'm ever NOT okay, so don't worry about it. I'll work on this as much as I can and hopefully get another chapter out before the end of the year but I want to tell you guys that I am probably moving at the end of this year or the beginning of the next year. It will be the first time I've EVER moved, I've lived in the same house since the day I was born so it's a big step for me. Hopefully my computer will survive the move and if not I'll post an update on my phone to let you guys know what's going on. Anyways, I love ya guys, don't worry about me! I'm safe!!!


	95. Trugg

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Editor's Note: I'm so sorry, guys! I didn't realize how long it had been since our trip and I'm an awful editor for leaving you all at a cliffhanger! No one's dead, I promise. I will keep up during the holiday season, but in January there may be another hiatus because we're moving and it's Artemis's first time moving ever so we'll see how well she adjusts to a new, big town. But once again, this pause is my fault and it won't happen again! Ya'll may hang me if I do. XP But thank you all so much for reading and we love you all and all your feedback and comments! It really keeps Artemis going to see how much you all like her story, and it makes me happy to see her smile. So thank you all, and without further ado here is the next chapter!
> 
> -Love, Jesse <3

Dragging the Red Lion back to the Castle was sickeningly familiar for all but Shiro. They had done this with the Black Lion after Shiro vanished without a trace after their fight with Zarkon. But now with Keith it was obvious that unlike Shiro, who had been teleported away by Black, Keith had clearly been kidnapped by somebody. And they had let them get away. They got what they wanted from that fight; they got the Pilot of the Red Lion and the potential Pilot of the Black Lion.

Matt, Coran, and Allura met them in Red’s hanger and Matt and Coran began working on restoring the power to the Red Lion to hopefully get some kind of clue to what could have happened in those very desperate moments before Keith was kidnapped. It could hold the key to getting him back. Allura, Pidge, and Hunk began to work on the location where all the Galra Fighters went but it appeared that they had gone to four different Galra Cruisers in the surrounding areas. They couldn’t waste time going from each cruiser to try and figure out which one their specific Galra fighter went to, so they had to narrow it down more. A lot more.

Lance and Shiro though, defaulted to blaming themselves for what happened. Lance sat in his and Keith’s room, looking at the crib in the corner of the room and the box of baby things Keith had brought in. Though he knew most of what actually belonged to Keith stayed in his old room there was still enough of Keith’s things in this room to make his heart seize with worry of what could be happening to Keith. Of course his thoughts always went to the worst-case scenario. What if they hurt him? What if they forced Keith to lose the baby? What if they killed Keith? Losing the baby would be horrible and so painful Lance didn’t think he could handle seeing a child again. But the idea of losing Keith… it was unimaginable. He wouldn’t be able to move on from a loss like that. His rival. His best friend. His lover. His life.

They had to find him. They had to find him soon. He couldn’t lose them. Not now and not ever. He would never be able to forgive himself. He had been so distracted by the fight and showing off to try and impress Keith that he hadn’t made sure that Keith was okay. If he had just looked over in Keith’s direction once, even for a second, Keith might still be home safe with them. But he hadn’t, and now Keith was gone.

There was a knock at the door and Lance looked up, hopeful to see Keith, but instead Shiro walked in. He didn’t want to seem disappointed but that’s exactly what he was. Shiro sat on the bed next to Lance, and neither of them said anything, just enjoying each other’s company as Shiro slowly reached back and began to rub circles on Lance’s back. It was comforting to Lance, but he suspected that Shiro was doing it more to comfort himself.

“We’ll find him, Lance.” Shiro promised. “You guys found me after all, and Keith is much stronger than I am.”

Lance nodded slowly, “I-I know we will… but what will those bastards do to him before we find him?” He said, terrified to find the answer.

 

It was Hunk who ended up calling to Olkari to let Krolia know what happened, but only after six hours had passed. To say that she was pissed that she had been kept out of the loop for so long on top of the fact that somebody dared to kidnap her son after she just got him back would have been an understatement. She called around to all her contacts and so far none of them knew who had Keith, though with so many ships it was hard to find out which, if any, actually had him. Finally though she started reaching out to some of her friends that weren’t Galra, which included one of her closest friends by the name of Uttara Arouet.

Uttara was a bounty hunter who also sold information from the Galra to the Marmora. The reason she knew so much information about the Galra was because she was also employed by some of the commanders to do more… difficult jobs. Such as killing those who were too wary of the Galra to be approached or kidnapping those too impossible to take. Unfortunately she knew right away that Uttara wasn’t behind Keith’s kidnapping because a) Krolia’s luck was never that good, and b) she had been talking to Kolivan during the time of the kidnapping. That would have been too easy.

“I had no idea you had a son.” Uttara confessed.

“Nobody did. Aside from Kolivan you’re the only person outside of the Voltron group that knows. Now please, I need information. I need to find out what happened to him.”

“Fine, I’ll see what I can do. But why the sudden urgency?”

“He’s pregnant.”

Uttara was quiet for a long time before she finally spoke. “I’ll call you when I find something. Hold tight, Krolia; I’ll get your boy back to you safe.”

 

Keith’s head was throbbing in pain, his eyes glued shut by the fear that the light would only make the headache worse. He let out a pained groan as he tried to adjust. Why was the bed so goddamned uncomfortable today? Not only was it uncomfortable; it was also really cold. It wasn’t until he tried to grab for his blanket that he realized that his hands were trapped together with only about half an inch between them.

Keith groaned and opened his eyes slowly. He was right about the light causing his headache to be worse, but what was more concerning was the fact that he didn’t recognize where he was at first. He was laying on the floor and all around him were dark purple walls. It took a while for him to actually recognize the horribly-colored interior, and with the recognition came the memories and panic that came with it. He remembered almost instantly that he had been kidnapped by two Galra Soldiers.

His wrists were shackled in front of him with electronic restraints, something he had been getting more and more familiar with as time went on. Another thing that caught his attention and made him realize why he was so cold was that his clothes were mostly gone. He was now only wearing his boxers and a tank top he had been recently wearing under everything, even his armor. It helped hide the baby bump from people who didn’t know he was pregnant just by his scent.

His armor was gone, his weapons were gone, even his helmet had been removed from his head and taken away from him. He sat up slowly, letting out a groan as he swayed slightly. He felt so tired, his vision still swimming as he felt like he was going to faint all over again. Keith brought his hands up to his face, sliding the palms down his face with a groan. Once his vision started to clear up he made his way up onto his hands and knees and then onto his feet. He stumbled towards the door and began to pound on it. Had the others been kidnapped too?

“Lance? Shiro? Anybody?!” He called, holding onto the opening in the door so that he didn’t end up falling right back down. “You guys! Hello- ah.” Keith let out a gasp as he stumbled backwards.

A person on the other side of the door had popped up and was now looking at him from the other side. Those yellow-rimmed blue eyes looked right at him, making him shake violently with a growl.

“Where are my friends? Why did you take my clothes?”

He ignored both of Keith’s question as he opened the door and reached towards Keith. Keith stumbled back away from him as the soldier snatched the chains between his wrists and began to pull him out of the room. Keith let out a whimper, struggling against him as he was dragged out of the room. The halls were colder than the room he had been trapped in, and the fact that he was being led past dozens and dozens of guards who were making whistles, flirts and sexual advances towards him, though it seemed as though they were doing all that they could not to let themselves get too close to him. It was worrying.

What were they planning? What were they going to do to him? Where was he being taken? Were they going to- No! No! He wouldn’t let them! He would fight tooth and nail. He wouldn’t let them hurt him or his baby! He wasn’t a damsel in distress! He was Paladin of Voltron! He had to protect himself! Keith dug his ankles into the ground as much as he could, pulling against his kidnapper.

“Let me go!” Keith said. “Let me go, you son of a bitch!” He yelled, struggling harder.

“Stop resisting.” He demanded, then picked Keith up slightly so that his feet were barely touching the floor. “We have orders not to hurt you, but if you give me any more problems I can’t say I won’t break those orders.”

Keith growled, trying not to feel absolutely terrified by that. He was pulled into a room and shoved onto his back onto a cold metal table. Keith struggled again, letting out a surprised yelp as his legs were violently forced apart and strapped to either side of the table and his wrists pinned above his head, a chain hooking them above his head.  
Panic ripped through him as another man walked over. This one was wearing yellow rubber scrubs and a white mask over his mouth and nose. This second man slid his hand under Keith’s shirt and lifted it up, exposing his stomach to the cold air. The man's cold calloused hands could be felt even through the layer of soft fur that covered more than ninety percent of Keith’s body.

“Don’t.” Keith said, his voice sounding more pleading than he wanted to. “Don’t touch me!”

The doctor said nothing as he then tugged the elastic from Keith’s underwear down slightly. It was still covering the majority of him but his stomach was quickly climbing up into his throat. Keith turned his head, looking away from him and tightly closing his eyes. Maybe if he didn’t look then it wouldn’t happen? Maybe if he didn’t give a sign that he was scared they wouldn’t hurt him? Maybe if he-

Keith let out a whimper as cold liquid dripped onto his stomach, causing him to fear for the worst, but instead of pain or molestation from his captors he felt a familiar wand press against his lower stomach. Slowly Keith opened his eyes and looked back in the direction of the doctor and the soldier who was with him. His lip trembled slightly as he watched them. The soldier stared at Keith with a large smile on his face while the doctor seemed focused on the screen next to Keith as he moved the wand.

“Approximately 10 weeks along, give or take a few days. Healthy.”

“Gender?” The soldier asked.

“Indeterminable.” The doctor replied and Keith frowned.

“Male…” He said, and they both finally looked at him. “I-it’s a boy.”

The doctor nodded. He seemed calmer than most other Galra he had met. “Understood. Healthy male of approximately ten weeks.”

“I see. I will alert General Trugg about this information. Keep him here until she gives the order.” The soldier said, then marched out of the room, leaving Keith and the doctor alone.

“W-why are you doing this? Why do you care about the baby?” Keith asked, his voice coming out in a scared growl.

“It’s not that we care about the baby, it’s that the baby is the perfect leverage for Prince Lotor to use against you. Besides, losing or terminating your pregnancy this far along would likely be fatal, so we must make sure that your pregnancy makes it to full term, or at least keep you and the baby healthy until Prince Lotor gives a different order.” The doctor said, cleaning off the wand before he ran a wet cloth across Keith’s stomach.

Keith shuddered and clenched his jaw, hating the feeling of his fur being matted down against him. “If you want me so healthy then I need clothes.” Keith said. “I’m freezing to death here.”

“We will discuss it with General Trugg but clothing will only be given if you behave and do as we say.” The doctor said. “Any resistance will result in a punishment.”

Keith growled, trying not to let himself look too scared by everything that was going on around him. Anger had always been his default reaction in times of fear or stress and it had only started to change since he had gotten pregnant, but if he wanted to protect the child growing inside of him he needed to go back to using that default to his advantage.   
He couldn’t forget what being a part of Voltron had taught him. He needed to use his head, come up with a plan, and depend on his team eventually coming to his rescue.

He clenched his teeth, then jumped slightly when there was a loud beep from beside him soon followed by the voice of the man who had left only a few minutes ago.

-Bring him up to the Bridge. Commander Trugg wants to meet our guest.-

The doctor walked over to the large box on the wall and pushed a glowing button on it. “Understood. We will be up there shortly.” He said simply, then moved his finger from the button and walked over to Keith yet again.

The doctor released Keith’s hands first, holding tightly to the binds as he then unshackled Keith’s ankles. Keith struggled, trying to push and kick him away but unfortunately for Keith the doctor was stronger than he looked and the second that Keith started to struggle he grabbed Keith’s tail and used it to pull him off of the table and dropped him on the floor, all the while the doctor kept a tight grip on Keith’s wrists, which had once again been yanked above his head.

“Behave. The more you struggle the more I will inject you with to keep you calm. And none of our drugs have been tested on unborn infants. Do you really want to risk your child because you’re too stubborn?”

Keith frowned heavily and hung his head. “I understand.” He mumbled.

“Good boy.” The doctor helped Keith to his feet and then adjusted Keith’s clothing for him. He pulled the tank top back down to cover his stomach before he then pulled up his underwear so that his hips weren’t as exposed as they were before. Once Keith was more ‘decent’, or as much as he could be considering how little clothing he was wearing at the moment, the doctor then began leading Keith out of the room and deeper into the ship’s interior.

The closer they got to the bridge the quieter the other Galra became, no longer whistling or making advances towards him. It was as though they were wary of what was on the other side of the massive doors. There was also a scent in the air. It smelled like stale sugary treats, and while normally the scent made him hungry there was something about it that made Keith’s ears stay close to his head, his tail wrap around his leg, and his stomach tense up. He would never be able to explain the scent but the feeling that came with it was… submissiveness. It was like being the bottom wolf… knowing that no matter what he did anything he said or did could lead to his death.

That was when it occurred to him. This was what it was like to be an Omega. And whoever was on the other side of that door was a very powerful Alpha.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uttara is a very amazing character by the winner of my contest Bondolas! Congrats again to them!

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first chapter out of who know's how many and is inspired by the posts/re-blogs from http://tomakehimfree.tumblr.com/ please check them out! They have some amazing things to check out! Anyways, please let me know how I can make this better!


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